NEWS AND COMMENTARY

Published on: January 8, 2013

More Drama Surrounding Reclusive Huguette Clark Inheritance

Celebrity estate planning and inheritance news often provides a helpful way to discuss basic topics that are applicable to all community members–even those without great wealth. At the end of the day, many of the same principles about proper planning apply to everyone, no matter what their situation in life.

One of the more high-profile celebrity estate planning stories to make headlines in recent years is that of Huguette Clark. Ms. Clark was the heir to a large copper and railroad fortune. She inherited most of the funds from her father, who is known as the founder of Las Vegas. Ms. Clark was an incredibly private individual, living most of the last decades of her life in a hospital room–even though she was well enough to not need medical care. She passed away in May of 2011 at the age of 104. However, even though it has been over a year and a half since her passing, the details of her inheritance are not entirely resolved.

She had no spouse or children but did have a network of extended family. Though if she was at all close with anyone in her family remains unclear.

Published on: January 7, 2013

Fiscal Cliff “Agreement” Reached: What It Means For Your Estate

by Scott C. Soady

As most people already know, Congress and the White House reached a deal this week to halt the implementation of the “fiscal cliff” changes related to tax increases and spending cuts. While the agreement was reached after the start of the new year, this is nothing more than a technicality as the actual facets of the cliff will be avoided.

The political wrangling surrounding the passage of the agreement was a bit of political theater. The Senate passed the bill on December 31st with broad bipartisan support. The details of the agreement were hashed out by Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and Vice President Joe Biden, and so with representatives from both parties involved it was easy to get sufficient support to pass the measure out of the Senate. The House of Representatives was a different matter, with the majority Republican caucus is disagreement about whether they would even allow a vote on the Senate bill. In the end, in a maneuver that surprised many, the legislation was called and some Republicans voted for the measure,

along with a majority of Democrats, to pass the bill.

Published on: December 23, 2012

Update on Same-Sex Marriage & The Supreme Court

by Scott C. Soady

After many weeks of speculation and several false alarms, on Friday the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) officially agreed to hear two appeals of cases related to gay marriage. The Court’s decision to grant these two petitions mean that next year is set up to be an incredibly important one for the gay community. Same-sex couples in California will undoubtedly be paying close attention to these matters, as they will have implications on many different issues, including long-term planning.

The Two Cases

The first case the Court agreed to hear is Hollingsworth v. Perry, which stems from California’s Proposition 8 measure that passed in 2008. Plaintiffs in the case sued alleging that the Proposition violated the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause. A district court agreed, striking down the ban. A panel of the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals agreed that the Proposition was unconstitutional. However,

Published on: December 19, 2012

Insurance Scam Targets Elderly Californians

by Scott C. Soady

With all of the scams targeting the elderly today, the smartest investment that a one might make is in a visit to an attorney who works on elder law and estate planning issues. An experienced legal professional can provide sound advice to help you invest your savings safely for the future and protect your assets from predators. This protection is invaluable at a time when you have already saved a lifetime’s worth of income for you and your family.

Recent Financial Scams

Far too many San Diego residents continue to be taken advantage of by scammers and con artists.

Published on: August 14, 2012

Do-it-Yourself Estate Tax Pitfall

by Scott C. Soady

Dealing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) often confuses people and leads to complications. That holds true even in situations where the IRS has tried to simplify a process. Take, for example, the estate tax. As a new Wall Street Journal story this week mentions, new rules seeking to make it easier for couples to share assets and still receive the maximum estate tax exemption may lead to problems if families are not careful.

The Issue

In June the IRS offered guidance on federal estate tax laws. Under current law–set to expire at the end of this year–each individual can exempt $5.12 million of property from the tax. When taken together, a couple can therefore shelter over $10 million from these taxes. Yet, there were always complications when one spouse sought to leave everything to the other spouse, because this act essentially eliminated one half of the exemption. Transfers between spouses were not taxed, but upon the death of the second spouse the entire amount would be taxed with only the individual spouse’s exemption rate applying.

Published on: May 20, 2011

Deceased Chest Champion May Soon Rest in Peace

by Scott C. Soady

Bobby Fischer, the former world chess champion, died in 2008 and yet the fight over his estate goes on. You may remember Bobby Fischer won the world chess championship in 1972 when he beat the Russian Boris Spassky in Iceland during the period of the cold war.

Fischer was born in the United States but was living in Iceland when he died in 2008 with no will. Four individuals were fighting over his probate estate, said to be worth between $2 and $3 million. Two are Fischer’s nephews Alexander and Nicholas Targ who live in California. The third is Marilyn Young who claims to have a daughter by him, named Jinky Young. Fischer had apparently been giving Jinky’s mother money for Jinky’s support and wrote postcards to the child which he signed as “Daddy.” The fourth is Miyoko Watai, a Japanese woman who married Fischer in 2004 and therefore is his widow.

To resolve the issue of the competing claims, the Court in Iceland ordered that Fischer’s body be exhumed to obtain a DNA specimen to determine if Jinky Young is in fact his daughter. Those results showed that she was not his daughter so then the contest continued between the widow Miyoko Watai and the two nephews. In March of this year, the court in Iceland ruled that his Japanese widow is his heir and entitled to his estate. The new nephews had claimed that the widow did not produce sufficient documentation that they were married and may appeal the court’s ruling.

Published on: May 8, 2011

May 8-May 14 is National Womens’ Health Week

by Scott C. Soady

National Women’s Health Week is a weeklong health observance coordinated by the U.S. Dept. of Heath and Human Services Office on Women’s Health. It runs from May 8 – May 14 and encourages women to take steps to improve their physical and mental health.

The theme this year is “It’s Your Time!” Some of the steps recommended for better health are getting at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate physical activity, 1 1/4 hour of vigorous physical activity, or a combination of both each week; eating a nutritious diet; visit your health care provider to receive regular checkups and preventive screenings; avoid risky behavior such as smoking and not wearing a seatbelt; and paying attention to your mental health, including getting enough sleep and managing stress.

These are great steps toward physical and mental health but what about also focusing on your financial health this week. If you are like most women, you are raising or raised your children, building a career or thinking about retirement, caring for your elderly parents, etc. Since women outlive men by 5 years and 2/3 of Americans over 85 are women, women need to be thinking about the steps they can take to improve their financial health as well as their physical and mental health. Women can overlook the need to be proactive to set financial goals, to address issues of incapacity, and to make an estate plan, leaving the decisions to their spouse, children, or worse, a judge.

Published on: March 15, 2011

Tips for the Tax Season

by Scott C. Soady

Tax time can be a stressful and frustrating time, gathering all the information, doing your taxes yourself or making an appointment with your tax preparer. MSN Money recently had a great article about the tax breaks and credits for the 2010 tax year that can save you money. Here are some highlights:

1. Check on the first time homebuyer’s credit. If you bought a home in 2010 as a first-time home buyer, you may be entitled to $8,000 tax credit. Also, people who lived in their home for 5 years and sold in 2010 may qualify for a credit of $6,500.

2. If you are single, the standard deduction went up for last year to $5,700.

Published on: December 31, 2010

New Laws for 2011

by Scott C. Soady

A number of new laws are going into effect on January 1, 2011. Here are just a few:

1. Possession of marijuana of an ounce or less will be an infraction rather than a misdemeanor.

2. Toyota Prius cars will no longer be able to use the car pool lane.

Published on: December 27, 2010

The Will Debuts on the Discovery Channel

by Scott C. Soady

A new series on the Discovery Channel is called The Will: Family Secrets Revealed. It is an eight part series on the wills (or lack thereof) of various people depicting the drama of some families after a death in the family. Throughout the series, each one hour episode will show the most curious and contentious real life stories of what happened after a loved one’s death, complete with conspiracy, mystery, tension, and turmoil.

Coming up are segments about the Estate of Doris Duke who left her butler an estate worth 1.2 billion, the estate of Kitty Tipton Oakes who died without a will, and the estate of actress Joan Crawford who left nothing to her two children who you may recall wrote the book Mommy Dearest.

Interesting viewing which highlights the importance of estate planning. Many of these stories involve people who either wrote no will or wrote one that was later challenged. There are right ways and wrong ways to disinherit beneficiaries and techniques to minimize possible litigation after your death. Contact us at Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation to discuss creating an estate plan which will fulfill your goals and minimize any drama after your death.