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As an attorney who practices primarily in estate planning, I often encounter people who ask, "Why do I need an estate plan?" I usually answer, "So your last wishes are carried out properly in the most timely and cost effective way possible." However, this statement does not cover all aspects of estate planning. In my [...]
What is Estate Planning Estate Planning is the process of planning during your life for the transfer of your property at your death to your beneficiaries. Estate planning can help to maximize the value of the estate by reducing taxes and expenses. Setting up an estate plan requires the services of an experienced estate planning [...]
What is a Successor Trustee? A Successor Trustee is a person who takes over the management of a trust after the initial trustee dies or is unable to fulfill their responsibilities. The Successor Trustee is responsible for executing the trust and managing it until the assets of the trust are distributed to the beneficiaries according [...]
The simple answer is no. Most trusts drafted by estate planning attorneys are amendable and revocable. The main idea behind having a trust drafted is protection. A trust protects your beneficiaries in a two major ways. First, a trust allows you to leave your assets to the people you choose in the manner you desire. [...]
The Tax Cut and Jobs Act (TCJA) is now officially law. Both the House and Senate passed the new tax reform bill in December with straight party-line votes and no support from Democrats. President Trump signed it into law right before Christmas. It is the first overhaul of the tax code in more than 30 [...]
It’s that time of year…tax season. When most of us think of tax season, we think of our individual and business tax returns since these are the most common tax forms. Most of us do not think of the tax obligations relating to trusts—but many of us should. Many of my clients are surviving widows [...]
What is a Living Trust? A "Living Trust", or a revocable trust, is a trust created by an individual during their lifetime to store their assets until they die. After they die, their assets are transferred to their beneficiaries by a “successor trustee” appointed by them. Two Major Reasons Why You Need a Living Trust [...]
There are over 9 million surviving spouses of veterans currently living in the United States. Many of these surviving spouses are receiving long term care or will need some type of long term care in the near future, and there are funds available from the Veterans Administration (“VA”) to help pay for that care. Unfortunately, [...]
Long-term care is becoming an important issue for our nation to address. We have 78 million aging baby boomers. The costs of long-term care to these baby boomers can be catastrophic and few people have sufficient resources to pay for needed long-term care. In an effort to deal with this growing concern, the Long-Term Care [...]
“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.” We plan to go on vacation. We plan to have dinner with friends. But when it comes to planning for how we will be taken care of as we advance in age, many of us prefer not to [...]
