Coach Dean Smith


April 30, 2015
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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.

To Amend or Just Start Over?


February 3, 2015
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If you have a current estate plan, as you know, we recommend that you review it on a regular basis. If there are changes that need to be made, it can be done through an amendment or codicil or through drafting the plan from scratch. Clients often think it is easier (and cheaper) to do […]

Privacy and your estate plan


January 19, 2015
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The British government announced recently that 4 million historical wills have been digitized and are now available for download by the public. As in the United States, these documents were previously available by traveling to the probate court and searching the available public records. Now anyone with an internet connection and a credit card can […]

Is Your Estate Plan Too Specific?


November 12, 2014
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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 […]

Robin Williams’ Estate: Subject to California Probate?


August 19, 2014
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As everyone mourns the death of Robin Williams and reflects on his tremendous talents, we estate planning attorneys can’t help but wonder, did Robin Williams do any estate planning? It is apparent that Robin Williams had a very successful career. What is unclear is the true value of his estate. Some reports indicate that Robin […]

Estate Planning Myth #9: Trusts? Trusts are for billionaires


May 8, 2014
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Sure, billionaires may have trusts for charitable gifting, inter-generational wealth transfer, and asset protection purposes, but for many families, trusts assist in more mundane circumstances, too. They can be useful tools for managing judicial awards or settlements from law suits. Leaving all assets outright to 18 year olds – even if these assets are not […]

Organizing Your Accounts and Passwords


March 5, 2014
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I emphasize to all of my estate planning clients the importance of keeping track of your assets, what they are, where they are located, etc. The reason: a Will or Trust instructs your Personal Representative or Trustee on how you want your assets to be distributed after your death, but not always what those assets […]

Mandatory Arbitration Provisions in Estate Planning Instruments


December 16, 2013
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In May 2013, the Texas Supreme Court enforced a mandatory arbitration provision within a trust instrument in Rachal v. Reitz.  Since then, a number of legal commentators have suggested that there is a growing trend towards the recognition of such provisions in the probate context.  The issue is far from settled, however, and the underlying […]

Property and Revocable Trusts – MN Estate Tax Update


October 23, 2013
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Individuals that own property in multiple states often consider placing the property into a revocable trust for planning purposes. While this can be an effective planning technique, there are some important points to consider. For purposes of the new Minnesota estate tax [2], a Minnesota resident’s gross estate includes any property that is physically located […]

Your Assets Matter


October 15, 2013
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A while back I introduced the topic of Revocable Trust versus a Will.  This post explores the first consideration in making this decision … what type of assets do you own, how are they owned and how do you feel about probate.