As we close the book on 2025 and look ahead to 2026, we are on substantially firmer territory than we were at this same time last year when it comes to the federal estate tax. In our local jurisdictions (MD and DC), in December 2024,…

This time of year brings to mind the famous 1986 Steve Martin “A Holiday Wish” sketch from Saturday Night Live: While none of us may have received $30 million tax-free each month like Steve Martin wished, many of us were fortunate enough to have warm…

Congratulations! You’ve made it to an estate planning attorney and crossed off that item that has been lagging on your to-do list forever. Your estate planning documents are in order. But now that you have this envelope full of freshly signed documents, which you mostly…

A common misperception of estate planning clients is that estate planning is a “once-and-done” proposition. The reality is, once you overcome the initial inertia and create an estate plan, every estate planning attorney will recommend you review your estate plan every few years to consider…

With Halloween upon us, it is “spooky season”. “Spooky season” doesn’t necessarily have to involve ghosts and goblins and zombies. “Spooky season” can be caused by poor decisions and not knowing your legal rights. BDBF attorneys offer the issues that terrify us to confront and…

We know the intrigue and the mystique of wondering where someone might be when all you know from an auto-reply to your e-mail is they are “out of the office with limited access to e-mail”. Hence, it’s time for our annual tradition – How BDBF Spent…

Recently, we heard from a former client who had a harrowing tale to share. The Sad But True Story Our client’s elderly Father was found unresponsive on the floor of his home by his caregiver. The caregiver immediately called EMS. The caregiver’s next call was…

Not very many law firms have been around for 39 years, let alone have employees who have worked at the firm for 39 consecutive years! In August 1986, Bernadette “Bernie” Rentfro was hired at Bulman Dunie by Larry Bulman after a mutual friend, (the Bulman…

One of the most frequent topics of conversation among estate planning attorneys in recent years (yes, we are sometimes boring) has now been resolved. On December 31, 2025, like Cinderella’s coach turning into a pumpkin, the federal estate tax exemption was scheduled to nearly halve….

Every year, June and July are “summer blockbuster season.” Hollywood releases a buzzworthy big-budget picture that is designed to drive us out of the heat and into air-conditioned movie theatres. What is the best summer blockbuster of all time? BDBF attorneys debate it! Tim Canney…