If you own your own business or have accumulated some investment portfolio, it is important that you do as much as you can to protect the efforts of your hard work and dedication. A family limited partnership (FLP) is a strategy worth considering — whether you seek to protect yourself, Continue reading
Your retirement accounts may be one of the most valuable things you own. As is common, you may consider naming your children as beneficiary on such an account in case something happens to you. However, if you have minor children, there are some factors that make this type of transfer Continue reading
A living trust is often promoted as a way to avoid probate and the costs, time delays, and loss of privacy that accompany it. Probate is the legal process for proving the validity of a person’s will after their death and appointing the nominated personal representative or executor. Continue reading
Asset protection planning is certainly useful for wealthy families and people in high-risk professions. But, anyone can be sued. A car accident, unexpected medical bills, or an injury suffered by a tenant or a visitor to your house could result in a monetary judgment that is devastating Continue reading
Life is full of possibilities. While some outcomes are relatively certain, other events are more difficult to predict. This uncertainty can create estate planning challenges. Because life changes quickly and sometimes unexpectedly, your estate plan needs to be flexible.
While you are Continue reading
One of the common challenges to a will or trust is that the person who made the will (the testator) or trust (the trustmaker or settlor) was not mentally competent to create it. While we would all like to believe that our family and loved ones will honor our wishes as expressed in Continue reading
A necessary, but not pleasant, aspect of estate planning is deciding what will happen to your child if both you and the child’s other legal parent were to die unexpectedly. While the odds of this happening may be low, the consequences of not naming a legal guardian in your will or Continue reading
What Is a Transfer-on-Death Deed?
If you own real estate, such as a home, in your sole name but you have not created a trust and transferred your property’s title to the trust, it is virtually guaranteed that your beneficiaries (or heirs) will have to deal with probate after your death. Continue reading
When someone has named you as the fiduciary in a will or trust (personal representative or trustee), when that person passes away you are obligated to distribute their money and assets to the beneficiaries who have been named in the document. Sometimes, perhaps because of a family Continue reading
Although having a will is a good basic form of planning, planning with a will involves some drawbacks. A primary drawback is that a will does not avoid probate. If you own property such as a house, car, bank account, investment account, or other asset in your name only and you have Continue reading
Do you have any travel plans coming up? You may have decided what you and your travel companions want to see and do, how much you are willing to pay, and the time you plan to travel. While your travel arrangements may be set, you need to consider calling in a special planning team Continue reading
A big goal in estate planning is to make things easier for our loved ones. A comprehensive estate plan can allow your money, property, and legacies be transferred to your intended beneficiaries in a harmonious, stress-free, and fair process so that your loved ones to grieve and deal Continue reading
It isn’t necessarily an honor to be named in a person’s will as the personal representative or executor. While you can take some satisfaction that your loved one thought enough of you to trust that you could act in that position, the duty you have been given can often be a sobering Continue reading
For many of our clients, probate is an unnecessary process that we try to avoid. But the probate system is there for those who need it, in some cases because of lack of proper planning and in others because of the benefits and protections that probate may offer. The probate system Continue reading
One classification of trusts is whether the trust is a grantor or nongrantor trust. Although every trust has at least one grantor (the trustmaker or settlor who creates the trust), the terms grantor or nongrantor are used to classify the trust’s income tax liability.
Grantor Trust Continue reading
If you own a small business, one of the many challenges you face is deciding what should happen to the business after your death.
For example, upon your death,
Most of us are familiar with the federal income tax. If you earn a paycheck, you can’t help but notice the deductions each pay period. Perhaps less familiar are federal taxes such as the capital gains tax, estate tax, and gift tax. Even less familiar for most is the generation-skipping Continue reading
Are there ever times that you might not want to accept an inheritance? While it might be an honor to receive something from a loved one who has passed, there may be reasons that an inheritance may not be desired. In some cases, receiving an inheritance may create logistical or financial Continue reading
If you are a beneficiary of a trust and your trustee is unresponsive to your requests for information regarding the trust, what should you do? A trustee has a duty under the law to communicate with beneficiaries and keep them reasonably informed as to the progress of the trust administration. Continue reading
Even if you are among the minority of US adults who have prepared a will, living trust, or other estate planning document, your plan may not be complete. Estate planning is an ongoing process, requiring regular review and periodic adjustments. A comprehensive plan requires that you Continue reading
Estate planning is all about protecting you and your loved ones. If you have a loved one that you want to provide a home for after you pass away, while having ultimate ownership pass to someone else after that loved one’s death, a right of occupancy trust can provide a solution.
What Continue reading
Over 40 percent of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. Regardless of how you feel about your child’s spouse, the reality is that they could become your child’s ex-spouse. Without proper planning, money and assets that you leave to your child could be subject to a division Continue reading
If you are an artist, it is important to include your artwork in your estate planning. Who can control your artwork if you become incapacitated, including matters such as selling, loaning, or licensing your pieces.
What do you want to happen to your artwork after you pass away? Options Continue reading
The use of genetic material, such as frozen sperm, eggs, and embryos, in reproductive technology creates unique issues in estate planning. Is that material considered property that needs to be planned for as part of your estate? Is it like your home, your cars, your jewelry? Who owns Continue reading