John Wick - What You Need To Know about the Corporate Transparency Act
Once Removed Episode 24: Expressing Goals and Intent for the Trust
Once Removed Episode 23: Naming Guardians for Minor Children
Once Removed Episode 22: Building Flexibility into the Estate Plan
Once Removed Episode 20: Helping a Beneficiary Purchase a Home
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 6 - Reshaping Your Legacy: Estate Planning After Your Divorce
Charitable Planning With Guest Stephanie Hood: Navigating Complex Rules and Traps for the Unwary
A Primer On Trusts - A Podcast with Janathan Allen
Once Removed Episode 13: It’s 5 o’Clock: Do You Know Where Your Will Is? A Lesson From Aretha Franklin
Once Removed Episode 12: SLATs and the Case of McKim vs. McKim
Once Removed Episode 11: Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts, or SLATs
Digital Planning Podcast Episode: Family Office Technology Solutions
Digital Planning Podcast Episode: The Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act
What is a self-proving affidavit?
The Importance of Beneficiary Designations
Taking the Sting Out of Death Taxes with Dylan Metzner, Jones & Keller
Basics of Estate Planning
The Case of the Disappearing Trust
Protecting Your Estate Plan from Challenges: No-Contest Clause Explained
The Secret Child
Equity’s maxims have many jurisprudential functions, one critical function being to sinew the equitable principles that regulate the law of trusts. A court that is saddled with sorting out the rights, duties and obligations...more
On July 18, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final regulations updating the required minimum distribution (RMD) rules. The final regulations reflect changes made by the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement...more
Over the next two decades, reports are estimating that baby boomers will pass down a combined $84.4 trillion in assets to younger generations. Dubbed the “Great Wealth Transfer,” this phenomenon is already underway and will...more
Friday the 13th is not all bad luck. On September 13, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit’s published its much-anticipated decision in United States ex rel. Holt v. Medicare Medicaid Advisors,...more
A “qualified disclaimer” is a tax-effective way to refuse a transfer of property that would otherwise occur on someone’s death. From time to time, retirement plan administrators may be contacted by a beneficiary who wants a...more
Welcome to The Verdict: Estate Planning Through Film. In episode two, host Hons Yung is joined by Farella Braun + Martel's Greg LeSaint to discuss the movie John Wick and the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). Greg breaks...more
Maryland’s Supreme Court declined to overturn the strict privity rule in legal malpractice cases. The rule, which generally bars third parties from suing lawyers, was a key issue in the recent Bennett v. Gentile decision. ...more
September 2024 AFRs and 7520 Rate - The September 2024 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 4.8%, a decrease from the August 2024 rate of 5.2%. The September...more
One of the most common questions posed by parents of minor children who are separated – or who are about to separate – is the following: what is child support and how much can I expect to pay or receive in child support from...more
Today’s federal estate and gift tax laws may be remembered as the most generous to wealthy families since the Great Depression. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) doubled the federal estate, gift, and generation skipping...more
A main goal in bankruptcy is to get in and out as quickly as possible to minimize costs. It is often the case that even though a substantial portion of a debtor’s assets have been liquidated in bankruptcy, some valuable...more
Recently, Michigan added a new section to the trust code, making it possible for trust settlors to create “quiet” or “silent” trusts in Michigan. As the name implies, in a silent trust arrangement, a trustee is not required...more
In Crossley v. Crossley, a plaintiff, who was the beneficiary of, or had the power to designate the beneficiary, in two trusts established by his mother, and he filed suit requesting that the court determine whether he or his...more
Dear Jonathan: My mother, who recently passed away, prepared a trust naming me as her sole beneficiary. She intentionally disinherited my brother due to a falling out they had years ago. Although he knows that he has been...more
With continuing uncertainty regarding the federal estate tax laws, the Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (SLAT) is a popular option that helps high net-worth individuals maintain flexibility while maximizing their financial...more
The September 2024 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 4.8%, a decrease from the August 2024 rate of 5.2%. The September applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use...more
When a loved one dies, the last thing you want to deal with is a lawsuit, or have your heirs inherit a lawsuit. After the death of a maternal or paternal figure that keeps the family together, tensions flare between siblings...more
On August 7, 2024, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS” or the “Agency”) issued a final procedural notice (“Notice”) outlining a new Medicare coverage pathway, aimed at achieving timelier and predictable access...more
Recently, much has been written about Rupert Murdoch’s petition to amend his Nevada irrevocable trust to grant his eldest son, Lachlan, voting control over News Corp and Fox Corporation. While the battle between family...more
In In re Trust A & Trust C, a beneficiary sued a trustee for breach of fiduciary duty and sought a constructive trust over assets that were transferred out of the trust. 690 S.W.3d 80 (Tex. 2024)....more
In response to illicit finance risks identified in the U.S. residential real estate sector, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has announced the issuance of its long-anticipated...more
Moving to another state? Revisit your estate plan - If you recently relocated to a new state — or you’re planning such a move — it’s a good idea to review and update your estate plan. You won’t have to throw out your...more
Did your father give you a nominal bequest but gave his favorite daughter the bulk of the estate? Were you bequeathed the family dog and $10,000, but your mother’s boyfriend of six months was to receive the Lamborghini and...more
On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a proposed class action accusing HHS of causing a shortage of home health aides willing to assist Medicare...more
For many individuals new to estate planning, particularly younger couples, there is something almost taboo when you start to discuss a revocable trust: does that mean our children will be trust fund babies?...more