It’s Time for the Ailing Wealthy to Hire Bodyguards and Food Tasters

While some people joke that the estate tax repeal and return should be called the “Throw Momma From the Train Act,” there actually is some truth to the nickname.

Sweden scrapped its estate tax on January 1, 2005. A study conducted by the University of Uppsala found that people subject to the levy were 10% more likely to die on that day than the day before. Those who were not subject to the estate tax showed no such disparity. An Australian university conducted a similar study when it scrapped its tax in 1979. More than half the people with taxable estates managed to delay their passing to the week after the tax was repealed.

Congress still has one month to figure out which estate tax proposal is best. No matter what they decide, they are giving taxpayers “a strong incentive to beat the deadline.”

Beating the Deadline: Time for the Ailing Rich to Hire Bodyguards and Food Tasters, The Economist, Nov. 25, 2010.

Special thanks to Special thanks to Adam J. Hirsch (William and Catherine VanDercreek Professor of Law, Florida State University College of Law) for brining this to my attention.