When An Estate Planning Attorney Can Help

Let’s say your mother has a trust that includes stocks that were your father’s. Possibly the stocks started as an employee purchase and were touched only two or three times over the years. Your mother receives a quarterly dividend from the stock, typically half in cash and half to the stock growth. So, what would the tax consequences be if this stock is left upon her death to be split among her three surviving children? Would it be better to start cashing the stock before she passes and put it in a trust account for her needs?