Milliken Dies Before Inheritance Tax Takes Effect

Spartanburg, SC, Jan. 5, 2011 -- Roger Milliken died two days before new estate tax rates took effect, saving his heirs a substantial amount of money, according to a Bloomberg News story.

Milliken, chairman of Milliken & Co., died on Dec. 30.

“The timing of his death surely benefited his heirs and the company,” Jock Nash, Milliken’s Washington lobbyist on trade issues for 25 years, told Bloomberg. “His timing was impeccable.”

Had Roger Milliken died Jan. 1, he would have faced a top rate of 35% after a $5 million tax-free allowance. His fortune peaked at $1 billion in 2003, according to Forbes magazine. It has declined since, along with the U.S. textile industry.