Category: Beneficiary
“The most well-known ‘death’ tax is the Federal Estate and Gift Tax. However, the reality is that few people really have to worry about the cost of federal estate taxes.” The least popular beneficiary is almost always the federal government. Most people are concerned that their estate will need to pay taxes and do what […]
“It is also important to realize that it isn’t merely ‘why’ you are updating your will, but ‘when’ you are updating that can make all the difference.” Estate planning lawyers hear it all the time—people meaning to update their will, but somehow never getting around to actually getting it done. The only group larger than […]
“External events that cause reflection are good reminders to update estate planning documents.” Now is a good time to reach out to an estate planning attorney to review and update beneficiaries, named executors, financial and health care proxies, wills and trusts, advises the article “Planning Strategies During Market Uncertainty & Volatility: Estate Planning and Debt […]
“Utilization of a testamentary trust for the surviving spouse is an excellent idea, whether the survivor is the husband or wife.” A couple doing some retirement planning has an updated will and a health care proxy in place, prepared with the help of an estate planning attorney. They own some rental property, a small business […]
“Survivorship periods don’t usually surpass 60 days. If this period surpasses 120 days, it could put the tax-free estate transfer of assets to a surviving spouse at risk.” A survivorship clause in a will or a trust says that beneficiaries can inherit only if they live a certain number of days after the person who […]
“A more present sense of one’s own mortality may drive those who have not made plans before to begin the process of creating an estate plan. For those who have existing plans, are they up to date? How does the changing economic environment affect prior decisions?” One result of the global health crisis is that […]
“Imagine you get married and within a year or two, your new spouse passes away. Now, imagine that your grief is compounded with financial stress.” Without an updated estate plan, a surviving spouse is left with a world of trouble, as described in the article “Protect Your Spouse and Children by Updating Your Estate Plan” […]
“Estate planning attorneys are getting mobbed with questions. Here is some timely advice from three attorneys on what families and business owners should be doing to prepare, in case the unimaginable happens.” What else could possibly go wrong? You might not want to ask that question, given recent events. A global pandemic, markets in what […]
“What is equal treatment at time of death can be disputed among the children, when some children have received substantially more in lifetime gifts than the others.” Most parents want to divide their estate equally among their heirs, but sometimes things just don’t work out that way. That’s especially the case when one child needs […]
“The rapidly evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis is creating a plethora of unique estate planning and legal challenges across the globe, particularly given the volatility of the financial markets.” As Americans adjust to a changing public health landscape and historical changes to the economy, certain opportunities in wealth planning are becoming more valuable, according to the […]
