Have you made your 2018 resolutions? They may include losing weight, exercising more, eating healthier or quitting smoking. Why not consider kick starting 2018 with a resolution to review your existing estate planning documents?
Category Archives: Estate Planning
Your Estate Planning New Year’s Resolution
Have you made your 2018 resolutions? They may include losing weight, exercising more, eating healthier or quitting smoking. Why not consider kick starting 2018 with a resolution to review your existing estate planning documents?
Which Daughter Gets Mom’s Diamond Earrings?
The law firm answer…..it depends. Did mom leave written signed instructions? If she did, her personal property will be distributed according to her wishes. But if she did not let her wishes be known in a comprehensive estate plan, there could be dissention among the heirs.
Estate Planning for Your Business
When you own and operate a business, your Buy-Sell Agreement is probably the last thing on your mind. It’s something your business attorney drafted years ago and most likely you have not thought about it since. Or, maybe you don’t have one at all! Just like your personal estate planning, having an estate plan for your business is very important.
The Importance of Disability Planning
For many, the New Year comes with New Year’s resolutions. If you have not completed your estate planning, or have not updated your planning in some time, doing so would be a good resolution to have. You might be surprised to know, estate planning does not simply mean having a plan for what happens in the case of your death.
Is the family/nominated Personal Representative/Trustee of a decedent required to hire the attorney who prepared the Will and/or Trust to administer the estate/trust?
The answer is NO. When a person dies leaving a Will and/or Trust, the nominated Personal Representative or Successor Trustee is not obligated to use the attorney who prepared the documents to administer the estate and/or trust.
Five Fast Facts About Trusts
What is a trust? Anytime legal terms start to be used, it is easy to get confused, especially with words that have other meanings in our day to day conversations. In this instance, a trust is a legal entity, similar to a corporation, which can own assets like bank accounts and real estate.
How Your Ex-Spouse Can Become Your Beneficiary
The scenario: Hank and Janice were married, had a daughter together, Elsie, and then got divorced. Hank died intestate, without a will, so pursuant to Florida law, Elsie was the beneficiary of his estate.
A Tale of Two Bad Outcomes – Why Unmarried Couples Need Estate Planning
Bob and Kate are an unmarried couple, neither of whom have children, and who live together in a home owned by Bob, individually. Let’s say Bob dies. The good news is he has a signed will. The bad news is he prepared the will himself, without consulting an attorney. The will leaves his home to Kate, who intends to continue living there just as she has for many years.
How Should I Own My Florida Homestead Property?
A commonly asked question is, “Should I own my homestead in my trust?” Generally, the answer is, “No.” This is not because of your ad valorem homestead exemption or even your Constitutional protection from the claims of creditors. It is not because we don’t want you to avoid probate.