One common estate planning technique the IRS has opposed or blocked for years is “charitable lid planning.” This technique relies on “defined value” and “value adjustment” clauses or similar provisions in wills, deeds or other transfer documents to cap the transfer taxes on estates, gifts or generation-skipping trusts at some predetermined amount. The IRS has consistently argued against defined-value clauses on the basis of the Fourth Circuit’s holding in Commissioner v. Procter (142 F.2d 824 (1944)) that such clauses are void because they remove the IRS’ incentive to audit returns and thus are against public policy.