One of the most commonly overlooked items I see in client’s estate plans and during probate administrations is retirement accounts and their beneficiary designations. I think this has to do with the cumbersome nature of updating beneficiary designations. You call the plan administrator or custodian who sends you paperwork with tiny print and all sorts […]
This statement (turned inquiry) may or may not be true. It depends on a variety of factors and client goals. Deciding whether to use a will or a revocable trust (a.k.a. living trust or revocable living trust) as one’s primary estate planning document is a question to be discussed with an estate planning attorney. The […]
In a previous post I spelled out the basics of the changes made to Minnesota’s Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney that will take effect January 1, 2014. As I mentioned, many of these changes were made to address the potential for abuse. Indeed, a Power of Attorney document gives broad and sweeping powers to […]
According to a New York Times article, Michael Jackson did have a Revocable Living Trust in place at the time of his death. A Revocable Trust makes good sense for a public figure because it is privately administered and not subject to the lengthy, costly, and public Probate process. There are quite a few good articles […]
We have posted a few updates on the 2013 MN Omnibus Tax Bill (the “Bill”) and the changes the Bill brings to MN’s estate and gift taxes (see Erik Doerr’s post, 2013 MN Omnibus Tax Bill, and Maggie Green’s post, Minnesota Gift Tax 2013). Another change that comes with the passing of this Bill is […]
Nowhere are you more generous than with your family. Whether you are saving for your children’s education, helping with the purchase of a first car, or helping to plan a wedding, your family is first in your mind and in your heart. This generosity often plays out in perhaps the most tangible way when planning […]
Often, clients ask if there is way to shelter their assets from creditors. In Minnesota, the short answer is: no. However, in a handful of states, there is a trust that could allow for someone to shelter their assets from potential creditors – or at least, minimize what the creditors could obtain. While we have […]
Serving as a trustee is not to be taken lightly. This is because in the context of trusts and estates, a fiduciary relationship exists between the trustee (a/k/a fiduciary) who holds and keeps a property interest for the benefit of one or more other people (a/k/a the beneficiaries). A fiduciary relationship has both legal and […]
Statutory Presumptions Minnesota statutes provide a set of default interpretations for some of the language used in Minnesota wills.1 Unless a will includes language to the contrary, these statutes provide interpretations for things such as what property can be passed via will, what happens when a beneficiary dies before the testator, how and when gifts might […]
Trustee A trustee is a fiduciary with a high degree of responsibility. As a fiduciary, a trustee has legal duties that he or she must perform. As discussed in Maggie Green’s series of posts, those duties include loyalty, impartiality, and recordkeeping. A trustee must act out of loyalty to the beneficiaries and not to further […]
A couple in love has a baby but they haven’t tied the knot. Many times they also haven’t created an estate plan. Unfortunately, the unwed parents in love need an estate plan more than married parents. Why, you ask? Well, if an unwed parent dies without a plan, the surviving parent doesn’t inherit any of […]