Estate planning attorneys are frequently asked a troubling question: what’s the quickest, cheapest, and easiest way to just avoid probate altogether? Of course, you can never expect an attorney to provide a blanket response to that question. It is similar to asking your doctor, “What’s the quickest, easiest, and cheapest…
Julius Schaller was a Hungarian-American immigrant was a wealthy grocery store owner who had acquired substantial assets that exceeded the threshold for paying estate taxes. In order to avoid the tax burden, he established a special scholarship foundation for Hungarian immigrants who pursue performing arts. He named it the Educational…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued a new alert regarding the transfer of brokerage accounts upon death. This report has important information for people who are considering using brokerage accounts as part of their estate plans. The alert informs current brokerage account holders, family members, and their other beneficiaries…
Most of the estate planning tips and tricks revolve around plans for couples; however, a single person’s estate plan is just as important. In many circumstances, the way that a single person structures their estate plan and who is named differs from an estate plan of a couple. Just as…
Riley B. King, also known as famed blues musician B.B. King, passed away on May 14 and left behind a contentious estate battle between his children and manager. One of his daughters, Patty King, claimed in an interview that her father did well by his children and is now leading…
Recent research shows that employees still working in Generation X do not have the overwhelming desire to retire. According to a new study released by Ameriprise Financial, an overwhelming 73% of people from Generation X plan on working in some capacity after they retire. However, interestingly enough the reason is…
The Supreme Court of South Dakota recently ruled on whether an estate should be probated intestate despite the existence of a copy of a will. This case is interesting because unlike most cases of lost wills, in this instance the spouse of the deceased wanted the copy revoked and the…
The daughter of the late iconic radio DJ, Casey Kasem, is fighting for new guardianship laws that would prevent future instances of elder abuse and neglect similar to what her father endured in his final days. Kerri Kasem has gone on record as saying that she feels like her father’s…
The Supreme Court of North Dakota recently ruled on the issue of a fiduciary self-dealing when he was one of the heirs inheriting from an estate. The case highlights the importance of creating clear boundaries when delineating responsibilities of an estate as well as ensuring that all of the proper…
A California Court of Appeals recent ruling may provide a way to fund a revocable trust that could provide for easy probate avoidance. Although this case applies specifically to California law, it does also give a template for other states to apply a similar probate avoidance technique for the revocable…