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
Individuals are often interested in ways to transfer their assets at death without having those assets go through a probate proceeding. Those same individuals are also often interested in accomplishing this without having to...more
There may come a point in life when you – or a loved one –need a trusted family member, friend, or professional to assist with your property and financial affairs and decision-making. Since that point may come when you are...more
In In re Guardianship of Margol, a mother named her son as her power of attorney agent and as a trustee of a trust in which she was a beneficiary. No. 05-21-00255-CV, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 4119 (Tex. App.—Dallas June 16, 2022,...more
FINRA recently highlighted Rule 3241 in the 2023 Regulatory Element Learning Plan. Rule 3241 became effective in early February 2021 and prohibits a registered person from being named as a beneficiary, executor, or...more
There may come a time in your life when you are in need of a fiduciary. A fiduciary relationship is deemed to exist when one party is bound to act for the benefit of another party. You may have the opportunity to choose your...more
Congress instituted National Estate Planning Awareness week in 2008 to help Americans understand estate planning and its role in a person’s financial well-being. It’s a great reminder to organize, review and update your...more
Picture this: your beloved grandfather hands out cash gifts to his three grandchildren every year on their birthdays. Each grandchild receives $100 every year like clockwork. Then, one year, your grandfather gives your cousin...more
This newsletter is intended to keep readers informed about developments in probate and fiduciary litigation in Massachusetts and New York. Intentional Interference and Unjust Enrichment Claims in Connection with a Trust...more
Daughter with Power of Attorney Had Burden to Show No Undue Influence over Father - Coscia v. Sweezey, 2021 WL 4765696 (Mass App. Ct. October 13, 2021) - Does holding a power of attorney from a parent in declining...more
In Moore v. Estate of Moore, a decedent’s wife claimed that she had an interest in an oil and gas lease formerly owned by her deceased husband. No. 07-20-00019-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 6142 (Tex. App.—Amarillo July 30, 2021,...more
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has announced that it has adopted a rule to limit a registered person from being named a customer’s beneficiary, executor, or trustee or from holding a power of attorney or...more
Estate planning is a team effort and the lineup of individuals and professionals that you choose for your team roster will determine the integrity of your plan for years to come. An all-star lineup for your estate plan should...more
After creating and implementing a plan for your estate, it is important to regularly revisit your plan to ensure that it is still reflective of your values and goals for passing along your legacy. Seemingly small changes in...more
“The only thing that stays the same is everything changes.” I can hear Tracy Lawrence singing that in my head just as clear as when I first heard it in 1996. I didn’t quite understand it back then, but I do now. Change is a...more
Most California trust and estate disputes involve adults who can make their own choices about what to seek and how hard to litigate, such as the common scenario of siblings competing for assets. But many disputes, or at...more
Many people believe that once they have executed their estate planning documents, those documents can remain in the safe deposit box until the day when they may be needed. However, your estate planning documents should be...more
A fiduciary is a fancy legal term for the person who will take care of your property for you if you are unable to do it yourself, such as the executor of an estate, the trustee of a trust, or an attorney-in-fact under a power...more
Stepmothers are frequent characters in California trust and estate litigation, as they are in fairy tales and Disney movies. With about half of all marriages ending in divorce, there are many stepmother/stepchild...more