Dan Duncan died in March 2010. By all accounts he died one of the wealthiest people in the world; his $9 billion net worth placed him 74th on Forbes’ list. But in an odd twist in timing, his estate may escape traditional federal estate taxation as we have known it for decades. Had he died a few months earlier, he might have faced a federal estate tax of at least 45%; had he lived past January 1, 2011, his federal estate tax rate might have been even higher, at 55%.

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