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Drafting For The Optimum Marital Deduction, J. Rodney Johnson

Law Faculty Publications

While the marital deduction provided for by federal estate tax law may not necessarily be the controlling factor in planning the will of a married person, it is certainly one of the most important factors because of the sheer magnitude of this deduction up to 50% of the adjusted gross estate. A direct consequence of this importance is reflected in the fact that the marital deduction has become the most written-about topic in the estate planning area. Most of what has been written about this subject can be divided into the two following categories: ( 1 ) an explanation of …