Recently we had a post on our estate planning blog about electronic wills, now only recognized by the state of Utah. What about electronic marriage? Two law professors at Michigan State University are advocating e-marriage. Their suggestion arose out of a situation where a Marine Sgt. met a Japanese woman…
Pets are a large part of our daily life. Pets can provide relief from stress, companionship, and an opportunity to get some exercise and socialization. Pets also can have a beneficial effect on our health in other ways. A study at the State University of Buffalo showed that people with…
A family allowance is a amount of money which the Probate Court can order the estate of a decedent to pay to persons who the decedent was obligated to support or who the decedent was in fact supporting at the time of his death. Priority goes to family members such…
Modern technology has altered many things in our society. Can technology improve the area of estate planning? How about an electronic or video will or trust? A client recently contacted our office to ask if he could videotape his father who was in failing health explaining orally how he wanted…
For now, there is no estate tax in 2010. Everyone expected Congress to address the estate tax issue in 2009 but it did not happen. The House passed a bill that would have permanently kept the 2009 exemption but the Senate failed to vote on the estate tax issue leaving…
An irrevocable trust is one that usually cannot be revoked, modified or amended. Trusts can become irrevocable in several ways. Some are created to be irrevocable at the time they are created. An example of this type of irrevocable trust is a Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT). This is a…
As many people approach their sixties, they begin wondering at what age they should start taking social security. It can be a confusing decision. Center for Retirement Research at Boston College has a good link to download the Social Security Claiming Guide. This document has all the information you need…
The first federal trial to determine if the Constitution allows states to ban same sex marriage began this week in the U.S. District court in San Francisco. The trial, which is supposed to last 2-3 weeks, involves a challenge to Proposition 8 which was passed by 52% of the voters…
As you travel through different stages of your life, you may not require the same estate plan. Estate plans are based in part on the phase of life you are in. An estate plan you created when you were in your 30’s could be very different from the one you…
You may remember that when famous baseball player Ted Williams died, his body was sent to the Alcor Life Extension cryonics company to be kept frozen until such time as medical advances could bring him back to life. Reportedly Williams’ head is being kept frozen separate from the rest of…