Category: Will
Wisconsin is the latest state to take a close look at the impact of the digital world on estate planning. The digital age has had a major impact on every aspect of our lives, including estate planning – which was created at a time when paper and physical property ruled. The laws created at that […]
A St. Louis case demonstrates how a blended family can be a challenge for estate planning. Both millionaires when they married in 1980, Mary Lee and Robert Hermann Sr., who had children from previous marriages, signed a prenuptial agreement aimed at protecting their own respective children. According to the Riverfront Times in “In Probate Court, […]
While payable-on-death accounts seem to be an easy answer for transfers they do not come without challenges. Payable-on-Death accounts, sometimes called Pay-on-Death or Transfer-on-Death, seem to be easy and therefore a popular method for transferring assets after the account owner dies. But this approach to estate planning must be carefully considered. The money in the […]
While estate executors can set a reasonable fee for their services the executors in the Leona Helmsley estate have found their $100 million fee challenged. The financial controversies surrounding “Queen of Mean” Leona Helmsley continue even after her death with large amounts of money left to her charitable foundation as well as her dog and […]
The Supreme Court’s recent decision legalizing gay marriage requires interpretation as highlighted in the case of a couple’s relationship statuses before the ruling took effect. Mauricio Leyton and his partner David Hunter had a commitment ceremony in 2002 to signify their lifetime commitment when they were not allowed to be legally married. They separated in […]
A trend by banks to not install safe deposit boxes in new branches being constructed could solve some problems for those handling estates. In the past, bank customers often used safe deposit boxes to protect important documents – but today it is estimated only 5% of customers have continued the practice. A recent blog by […]
The spouse is usually named the executor of a partner’s estate but it is important to consider that decision when a divorce occurs. The divorce of the former lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots, Scott Weiland, caused controversy in the naming of the executor of his estate following Weiland’s death last year of an apparent […]
A family member may not always be interested in taking on the job of being an executor and administering the estate. Since people usually like appointing an executor that they know and trust, they often name a family member or friend to the post. Sometimes when those appointed as executors are informed of the decision, […]
One page of a will is carried 40 miles by a tornado after home is destroyed. After a tornado hit Perry County in Tennessee it carried a page of a couple’s will 40 miles away and, after being found, helped settle their estate. Antonio and Ann Yzaguirre were killed in their home which was left […]
One way to become a suspect in a murder case is to submit a previously unknown will that names you as the sole heir of the deceased. Jake Clyde Merendino, a wealthy man after an inheritance from his parents and the success of a business of his own, traveled a great deal and collected art. […]
