We see many, many situations where a person has become separated from their spouse or divorced, but still has their estranged or ex-spouse as their Trustee and Beneficiary under their Living Trust, or Personal Representative and Beneficiary under their Will. Further, they forget to change out the Death Beneficiaries on many of their financial vehicles. ... [Read More]
Tag: estate planning
7 Major Errors in Estate Planning
Forbes Magazine on April 25 published an article titled “7 Major Errors in Estate Planning.” The seven errors listed are a no-nonsense list of the mistakes we Estate Planning lawyers see daily. They are: 1. “Not having an Estate Plan.” 2. “Online Do-It-Yourself Estate Planning rather than using an experienced Estate Planning attorney do the... [Read More]
What Is A Living Will?
A Living Will is a legal document that normally states that if you are terminal and incurable and death is imminent, or if you are in a permanently vegetative state and not coming back, the medical providers may remove you from a ventilator, if you are on one. It may also authorize the removal of... [Read More]
Will Your Health Care Power of Attorney/Proxy Work Out of State?
Most Health Care Powers of Attorney (also know as Health Care Proxies in some states) are designed to work within the state in which the lawyer drafted them. Many times they contain written references to state specific statutes, such as here in North Carolina. Unfortunately, they may not work in another state when you cross... [Read More]
Mike Wallace Died Saturday—He Had Dementia
Most people don’t want to plan for their inevitable death, let alone dementia. You can plan within your Living Trust for mental incapacity. You set the panel who decides when it is needed. You choose the doctor and which trusted loved ones turn on the mental disability provisions. Who do your assets pay for if... [Read More]
Analysts Project Estate Tax Exemption Going Back Down to $1 Million and Estate Tax Rates Back Up to 55%
Analysts recently advised that given the upcoming elections, they don’t anticipate Tax Law changes until 2013 or 2014 (click here to read the article). Therefore, they anticipate the Bush Tax cuts expiring on December 31, 2012, leading us back to Estate Taxes being applied on Estates with more than $1 million and Estate Tax rates... [Read More]
Constantly Update Your Estate Plan
You must update your Estate Plan, including your Trust and Will, constantly. The reasons you need to update your Estate Plan – Revocable Living Trust, Will, Health Care Powers, etc. – is that three things are always changing: the law, your relationships, and your assets. 1. The law is regularly changing by changes in the... [Read More]
A Will Cannot Plan for Mental Disability
A Will is only effective when you die, not before. It only moves assets that are titled in your name through the Probate Court. If there is real estate in different counties and different states, you may have multiple Probates to move those pieces of land. The Will cannot plan for Mental Disability care. We... [Read More]
Why Whitney Houston Shouldn’t Have Used a Will
Unfortunately, Whitney Houston used a Will based Estate Plan. Her “Last Will and Testament,” or Will, was admitted into Probate Court in Atlanta, Georgia. As guessed, Whitney’s 19 year old daughter is her sole beneficiary of the Will with payouts to her at ages 21, 25, and 30. Meanwhile, the Trustee would make payments on... [Read More]
Whitney Houston and Estate Planning – Part 3
As discussed before, right after we hear of the death of a celebrity, we ask, “How?”. Not long after, we ask, “How much money did they leave and to whom?”. Again, Whitney had traveled a troubled road of drug addiction and tough relationships. While alive, she had been separately sued at different times by her... [Read More]