Each year, the news is full of stories about high-value celebrities who pass away without adequate planning and as a result, have assets that end up tied in lengthy and costly legal battles. While many people have estates smaller than well-known celebrities, estate planning is critical for these individuals. After…
The pandemic has created substantial challenges for many people and disrupted countless facets of daily living. Low-interest rates and depressed asset values, however, have created an ideal situation for estate planning. If you’re interested in planning for the future, there are some unique estate planning strategies that you should consider…
Following his passing on January 23, 2021, Larry King’s widow remains locked in a dispute with the late celebrity’s son concerning the distribution of King’s assets. While estate battles are often challenging, this case is particularly complex for several reasons. One, a divorce was pending between Larry King and his…
Assisted living facilities provide elderly individuals with a stepping stone between independent living and the more intensive care provided at nursing homes. Elderly individuals can receive assistance with things like cooking, cleaning, and hygiene at assisted living facilities while still maintaining personal independence. Deciding whether your loved one would…
With the implementation of the Biden administration in the country, various changes are likely to occur including several related to estate planning. One change involves a reduction in the estate tax exemption while a second revision to estate planning law is an elimination of the basis step-up for inherited property. …
No one likes thinking about what will happen when their health begins to decline or what that person’s loved ones will do following their death. Failure to engage in adequate planning now can leave your loved ones in an undesirable situation and can also greatly increase the chances that these…
In the 2020 case, In the Estate of Mayberry, a Texas court ruled that the common-law wife of a deceased individual who died interstate lacked standing to remove the deceased’s daughter as an independent administrator. The court’s ruling was based on the perspective that the deceased’s daughter was not…
The estate planning dispute that occurred following Prince’s death in 2016 has arisen again after the Internal Revenue Service determined that Prince’s estate is worth approximately $163 million or twice what Prince’s estate representatives reported on his estate tax return. This difference resulted in approximately $39 million of penalties and…
One of the biggest changes to estate planning over the last few decades has been the increase in the number of estates that own digital assets. If you fail to create plans for how your digital assets should be handled after your incapacity or death, undesirable consequence could occur involving…
As we enter into 2021, the country remains in a state of flux. Following the United States Presidential election in November 2020, the beginning of January also saw the Georgia run-off which involved two seats in the United States. While the Republican Party had 50 seats in the Senate before…