Divorce is a time of massive change. Change in schedule, change in routine, change in living situation, change in dynamic, change in budget – you name it, it changes after a divorce. Many divorcing couples do not understand, however, that divorce should also be accompanied by a change in estate plans. (An estate plan […]
“Close” counts with horseshoes and hand grenades. Unfortunately, it doesn’t count for entitlement to deduct a charitable contribution, once the amount claimed exceeds a trigger point. When that happens, the taxpayer’s own records – no matter how convincing – won’t suffice. There has to be an acknowledgement from the charity itself that follows the law […]
Unfortunately, too many recent newsletters have focused on the death of musical legends. This month left us with another untimely death. Prince, whose legal name was Prince Rogers Nelson, died on April 21st at his Paisley Park recording studio and home in Chanhassen, Minnesota. As unbelievable as it may seem, according to his sister, Tyka […]
The Missing Will Do you know where your original Will is located? You should, and so should your executor. The dilemma of a missing original Will has come up in the death of Melissa Mathison, screenwriter of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and ex-wife of Harrison Ford. Mathison died on November 4th as a resident of […]
While an inheritance is often considered a gift by the recipient, from a tax perspective, there optimal ways to inherit a retirement account. From the language used to designate the beneficiaries to important IRS-imposed deadlines, the manner in which a retirement account is inherited can significantly affect its value. If you are the beneficiary of […]
Often when people set up their estate plan they will ask the attorney “Can someone challenge this?” Truthfully, anyone can try to challenge a person’s estate plan – the bigger question is whether that person would be successful in his or her challenge. Even if the testator attempts to prohibit someone from challenging his or […]
An individual retirement account (IRA) is typically established in one of two ways. As a custodial account, where the bank or financial institution is simply acting as a fiduciary and must follow the directions of the account owner (including the instruction to cash out the entire balance). An IRA can also be held in trust (the […]
Men’s college basketball coaching legend, Dean Smith, passed away on February 7, 2015. Coach Smith utilized a revocable trust in his estate plan. He included a unique bequest.
Estate planners do encourage clients to be specific with their various bequests within their estate plan. When describing gifts of both real and tangible personal property or defining beneficiaries, we want the assets and individuals to be identifiable. However, it can actually cause problems when clients get too specific and potentially lead to unintended complications […]
Unfortunately no matter how close a family might seem, it always has the potential to endure disputes between members either during everyone’s lifetimes or after someone has passed away. The fights can get ugly and feelings can get hurt. But often the disputes could have easily been avoided, or resolved, if individuals remembered the lessons […]
On June 12, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on a divisive bankruptcy and estate planning case. At issue was whether an individual retirement account (“IRA”) that a debtor inherited was exempt from the debtor’s bankruptcy estate under the Bankruptcy Code. The Bankruptcy Code permits a debtor to protect assets that are in a “retirement […]