The decision to disinherit a child can be very difficult for some people. Other people just want to give less to one child and more to another. There are usually valid reasons behind the decision and it is not one people take lightly. Most clients I see are reluctant to…
A revocable living trust, be definition is a legal agreement for the trustee to hold property [legal title] for a beneficiary. A revocable living trust is one of the only legal documents you can make with yourself which is legally binding. Another name for a revocable living trust is an…
In our last blog, we discussed how a special needs trust may be a necessary part of your estate plan if you want to provide for an individual with a disability. A special needs trust, sometimes called a supplemental needs trust is one that must contain specific language and must…
A revocable living trust is an important part of your estate plan when you have children. Children under the age of 18 cannot inherit large sums of money. If you have assets in your estate which would go to your minor children and you have no trust, the Probate Court…
If you do not have a will, or better yet, a trust, your estate will be distributed according to the laws of “intestacy” set forth in the Probate Code. There may be a difference between how your estate is distributed according to your wishes and how it will be distributed…
From time to time it is fun to look back on what are some of the strangest bequests people have put in their estate planning documents. 1. An eccentric lawyer named Charles Vance Miller, a resident of Canada, was noted for his practical jokes. He left a large sum of…
Many clients have questions about leaving a distribution from their estate to a beneficiary who has an addiction. Leaving money or assets to an individual who has an alcohol, gambling, or drug addiction can be concerning so they want to make sure that the individual will not squander their inheritance…
Probate is the legal process instituted in the Probate Court to determine the beneficiaries of a person’s estate and distribute the probate assets to the person’s heirs or beneficiaries. Ancillary probate is an additional probate proceeding that is required in addition to the state where the decedent lived and died…
Many trusts created by married couples provide for the splitting of the trust into 2 subtrusts after the death of the first spouse. These types of trusts go by a variety of names: A/B trust, marital exemption trust, by pass trust, or disclaimer trusts. In these types of trusts, the…
If you have a revocable living trust, there may be questions that you have about the funding and operation of your trust. Here are a few frequently asked questions about your trust once it is in place. 1. How do I re-title assets into the name of my trust? If…