McGill vs McGill: Jimmy vs. Chuck

[kieyra]

9 minutes ago, Jextella said:

I *think* I agree with this.  Assuming Chuck's not faking his illness, I think it makes sense that it would be the result of guilty feelings from some sort of misdeed.  Either the stress of the divorce or something having to do with the divorce caused it to surface.

That definitely makes sense in the context of most people's truly deep-seated problems having their roots in earlier life, sometimes decades earlier. And unless mental illness runs in the family, it must be something other than a charismatic, sketchy little brother that pushed Chuck into his fanatical worship of the law--and into the space blankets. 

(Having said that ... I'm seated at the "would like to see the end of Chuck" table, so if we ever find out what that psychological defining moment was, I'd like it to be soon.)

Edited June 3, 2017 by kieyra

[ShadowFacts]

10 hours ago, Jextella said:

My belief is that what Chuck has done thus far to Jimmy takes the most air out of Jimmy's sails yet, but its not enough to make Jimmy embrace a life-style working with hard-hitting and violent criminals as clients.  There needs to be more.  IMO, the more will be a betrayal by Chuck that hits at the very core of Jimmy's soul.  It has to be something very dark and hurtful ... something so dark and hurtful that Jimmy abandons the regular world in favor of it's criminal underbelly.  Something that nearly dismantles Jimmy's belief in humanity.

I think Jimmy is within spitting distance of closing off the best parts of his nature, but not there quite yet.  We saw his darkness in the bar scene with Kim and the look on his face leaving the insurance office.  Chuck is at the heart of it, because Jimmy abandons the McGill name.  I think the only way for Jimmy to find out something about what Chuck has done in the distant past is if Chuck blurts it out, and that's certainly possible.  Chuck has been coming undone for a long time, that doesn't just get better by itself.  I think if Chuck were to die alone as Jimmy predicted, something might be found among his papers, etc. but Jimmy may not want anything to do with Chuck's estate and never find out that way. 

[Jextella]

Another random thought about la familia....Maybe Chuck doesn't want Jimmy to practice law for a reason other than his Slippin' Jimmy ways.  Maybe it has to do with the idea that Jimmy will be knowledgeable enough to figure out Chuck's transgressions where their parents are concerned.   Knowledge is power as they say.  Chuck could be trying to hide his tracks by keeping Jimmy as far removed from the situation as possible.  Far-fetched idea, but one never knows.

As to Cinnabon Saul....we've been looking to the past quite a bit.....there is plenty to say about the future, too.   Jimmy possibly taking guardianship over Chuck and cashing out of HHM and $26 million payout...or some such thing.  And also the Sandpiper money that everyone has been keen to say will be several years coming - assuming they win the case.   Cinnabon Saul may have a windfall coming to him in the post BB universe - or maybe not - if Chuck finds a way to push Jimmy out of the picture in both areas. I could see how screwing Jimmy out of the Sandpiper case would be the final trigger that send Jimmy over the edge.

The storyline possibilities are intriguing and could go on for a long time to come :).  

Edited June 3, 2017 by Jextella

[Juliegirlj]

I don't think Chuck is faking his illness. Perhaps it was HE, who somehow caused his Dad's business to go under-perhaps he took the money hoping that his golden child brother would get the blame- and his fathers resulting death caused such great guilt that it caused his psychosomatic illness?! 

[ShadowFacts]

Hasn't it been established that Chuck's symptoms appeared after his divorce?  That's interesting, inasmuch as the problem seems exacerbated by Jimmy's hijinks.  Now that he is successful in jamming Jimmy up for a year, I wonder if his symptoms let up, in conjunction with some doctor visits.  It still makes me wonder what about the divorce triggered things.  Could Rebecca have been a buffer against his dealing with other problems?

[Adiba]

19 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

Hasn't it been established that Chuck's symptoms appeared after his divorce?  That's interesting, inasmuch as the problem seems exacerbated by Jimmy's hijinks.  Now that he is successful in jamming Jimmy up for a year, I wonder if his symptoms let up, in conjunction with some doctor visits.  It still makes me wonder what about the divorce triggered things.  Could Rebecca have been a buffer against his dealing with other problems?

Yes, because had it been prior to the divorce, wouldn't Rebecca have already known about it? My understanding of conversion disorder (my mother had hysterical blindness twice after two stressful incidents) is that something very stressful or traumatic precipitates it. So while Jimmy's shenanigans may exacerbate it, I don't think they're the cause, if Jimmy has been "this way" since youth.

To be clear, my mother's symptoms were real to her-- she literally could not see temporarily, even though there was no physical cause. The mind- body connection is very complex, and still not understood fully.

[ShadowFacts]

42 minutes ago, Adiba said:

Yes, because had it been prior to the divorce, wouldn't Rebecca have already known about it? My understanding of conversion disorder (my mother had hysterical blindness twice after two stressful incidents) is that something very stressful or traumatic precipitates it. So while Jimmy's shenanigans may exacerbate it, I don't think they're the cause, if Jimmy has been "this way" since youth.

To be clear, my mother's symptoms were real to her-- she literally could not see temporarily, even though there was no physical cause. The mind- body connection is very complex, and still not understood fully.

Yes, I think Rebecca would have known about it.  I was wondering if Chuck's problems were triggered by the news that Jimmy had gone to law school and passed the bar.  I'm trying to remember back, in my memory it seems like Chuck was still functional in the office when he got that news.  It may be that Jimmy becoming a lawyer and Chuck's divorce were close in time.  Chuck's carefully constructed life was cracking. 

[Jextella]

42 minutes ago, ShadowFacts said:

Yes, I think Rebecca would have known about it.  I was wondering if Chuck's problems were triggered by the news that Jimmy had gone to law school and passed the bar.  I'm trying to remember back, in my memory it seems like Chuck was still functional in the office when he got that news.  It may be that Jimmy becoming a lawyer and Chuck's divorce were close in time.  Chuck's carefully constructed life was cracking. 

And also the mother passing.  According to a timeline I found on another board we have the following (only a range of years was provided for when Jimmy passed the bar)

• 1997 - 2000 Jimmy passes the bar; quits working for HHM
• 1999 - Mother dies
• 2000-2001 - Chuck and Rebecca divorce (site says that at the disbarrment proceedings, Jimmy suggests Chuck started getting sick after the divorce...I don't remember this though).
• 2000-2001 - Chuck gets sick - 6 months before sabbatical (I do recall that while Chuck was at the hospital, Kim said symptoms started 2 years ago; took sabbatical about 18 months ago)
• 2001 - Chuck takes sabbatical from HHM

I guess that would make three things Chuck has to deal with in a short time frame.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 6/2/2017 at 10:52 AM, ShadowFacts said:

On 6/2/2017 at 10:47 AM, SunnyBeBe said:

Ref. the $14,000.00.  Isn't it likely that was a GIFT, by someone who knew that $14,000.00 is the maximum amount you can gift without paying gift tax per year?  Most Powers of Attorney authorize it. 

http://blog.taxact.com/gift-tax-do-i-have-to-pay-gift-tax-when-someone-gives-me-money/

But this was years ago and the maximum was lower then. 

The Gift Tax is only applicable if you leave a large estate. "The “basic exclusion” (also known as the “unified credit”) represents both the lifetime gift tax exemption and the estate tax exclusion, signified as a total amount of $5.34 million. The current law allows individuals to give away up to $5.34 million over their lifetime without having to pay gift or estate taxes. The average person does not have to worry about how much he gives per year.  https://www.irs.com/articles/7-things-you-should-know-about-gift-tax

[Bryce Lynch]

23 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

Hasn't it been established that Chuck's symptoms appeared after his divorce?  That's interesting, inasmuch as the problem seems exacerbated by Jimmy's hijinks.  Now that he is successful in jamming Jimmy up for a year, I wonder if his symptoms let up, in conjunction with some doctor visits.  It still makes me wonder what about the divorce triggered things.  Could Rebecca have been a buffer against his dealing with other problems?

Rebecca had no idea about Chuck's "condition", so he could not have been suffering from it before they were separated.  In the first episode ("Uno") Jimmy mentions that Chuck has not set foot in HHM for "nearly a year".  So that gives an approximate time frame for when Chuck began to believe he was allergic to electricity.  It is not explicitly stated, but I suspect the divorce may have triggered his "condition".  

The severity of Chuck's condition seems to fluctuate based upon factors like what Jimmy is up to, and what motivation (e.g. winning Mesa Verde back from Kim) he has to overcome it and how distracted he is by work or other things going on in his life.  

Of course, he intentionally exaggerated his condition to get Jimmy's confession on tape, but for the most part I think his subconscious often causes him to feel more or less pain from his "allergy" to suit his wants and needs.  

[Quilt Fairy]

1 hour ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

The average person does not have to worry about how much he gives per year. 

Yes, they do. There is still an annual limit, currently $14K.  It was $10K for a number of years.  Regardless, I don't think that's the $14K Chuck is accusing Jimmy of stealing.

[Bryce Lynch]

2 hours ago, Jextella said:

And also the mother passing.  According to a timeline I found on another board we have the following (only a range of years was provided for when Jimmy passed the bar)

• 1997 - 2000 Jimmy passes the bar; quits working for HHM
• 1999 - Mother dies
• 2000-2001 - Chuck and Rebecca divorce (site says that at the disbarrment proceedings, Jimmy suggests Chuck started getting sick after the divorce...I don't remember this though).
• 2000-2001 - Chuck gets sick - 6 months before sabbatical (I do recall that while Chuck was at the hospital, Kim said symptoms started 2 years ago; took sabbatical about 18 months ago)
• 2001 - Chuck takes sabbatical from HHM

I guess that would make three things Chuck has to deal with in a short time frame.

I am pretty sure Jimmy passed the bar after the divorce.  In the flashback in "Chicanery" when Rebecca visits Chuck at his house, she mentions that she can't believe that Jimmy had become a lawyer and a real, responsible citizen.  So, they are already divorced when she finds out he passed the bar.  She expressed surprise that Chuck had not changed the house at all (little does she know LOL), which suggests they had been divorced for a decent amount of time.  

Edited June 5, 2017 by Bryce Lynch

[ItCouldBeWorse]

13 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

1 hour ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

The average person does not have to worry about how much he gives per year. 

Yes, they do. There is still an annual limit, currently $14K.  It was $10K for a number of years.  Regardless, I don't think that's the $14K Chuck is accusing Jimmy of stealing.

The annual limit allows your estate to avoid a gift tax when you die.  If your estate will exceed $5.34 million when you die and you wish to avoid a gift tax being levied on your estate, then keep to the annual $14k gift limit per person, per year.  If you are fairly sure that your estate will be significantly lower than $5.34 million, including the extra money over $14k per year, per person, that you gave away, I do not believe you need to be concerned with this.

You are correct in that if you gave 3 million away to one person some year (an extreme example) and had 3 million left in your estate when you died, there would be gift taxes due.

Please, all CPAs should feel free to weigh in.

Edited June 5, 2017 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Bryce Lynch]

11 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Yes, they do. There is still an annual limit, currently $14K.  It was $10K for a number of years.  Regardless, I don't think that's the $14K Chuck is accusing Jimmy of stealing.

I agree, I doubt the number $14,000 is relevant, other than possibly as a callback to the cost of Walt's "fugue state".   I also think it is not a huge amount of money to disappear over maybe 7 to 10 years, with a gullible, kindhearted sap for a store owner, a town full of grifters who know he is an easy mark, and a son who helps himself to a few dollars from the cash register now and then.  

[scenario]

Half the bums in the city owed Jimmy's dad money. A good sob story and they'd walk out with a gallon of milk. $10 a day x 365 days a year is $3,650 a year. Do that for 4 years and you're down $14,000. Jimmy didn't have to steal the money. His dad gave most of it away $1 or $2 at a time.