U.S. Supreme Court Decides Kaestner But Teaches Little

The U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, held in favor of the taxpayer in North Carolina Department of Revenue v. Kimberley Rice Kaestner 1992 Family Trust.¹ The Court held that North Carolina can’t tax trust income based solely on the presence of in-state beneficiaries when the beneficiaries had no right to demand the income and weren’t certain to receive it. Although unanimous opinions are often referred to as “sweeping,” Kaestner was clearly designed to