The rise in the number of divorcees in New York as well as the rest of the country has led to a larger amount of blended families. While similar in many ways to traditional families, blended families face some unique estate planning challenges. This article reviews some of the most…
Planning for your children’s educational needs is a worthwhile goal. Fortunately, various options exist for satisfying this goal. A 529 plan can prove to be a powerful tool for paying tuition as well as paying for other education-related expenses while realizing tax advantages. Following your death, however, no certainty…
Democrats in the House of Representatives recently released their plan on how to adjust basic income and estate taxes for both businesses and families. While it’s impossible to provide a comprehensive review of what these various pages contained. This article addresses a few of the major announcements. Only a…
A June article in the New York Times reports that progress is finally occurring in the resolution of the estate of the late James Brown. Despite a clear intent that his estate is used for underprivileged children in Georgia and South Carolina, however, the late James Brown’s estate is yet…
The difference between children born during a marriage and those born outside of marriage might seem insignificant, but this issue can become a substantial one for people who are navigating estate planning issues. In a recent case, Hollywood producer Steve Bing passed away with two illegitimate children. Steve’s father…
Many people make the mistake of thinking that they don’t need to engage in any type of estate planning. While you might not be one of the 1% in regards to financial wealth, you should still give great thought to what you would like to have happen if you become…
Estate planning should be tailored to fit your unique situation. Each person has their own list of objectives that they must achieve. The issues that unmarried people must address are different from those that need to be tackled by married couples. This article reviews some of the common issues that…
Many people fall into the trap of thinking that wills are only for the wealthiest individuals. Other people falsely believe that because they are young, there is little to no reason to write a will. In reality, life is overwhelming and unpredictable. As easy as it is to assume that…
Family wealth has led to disputes over the years. Today, Hollywood also continues to make films like Knives Out that address what happens when families cannot agree on how an estate should be divided. Given that the Covi-19 pandemic has placed an increased amount of financial pressure on families, a…
For many years, life insurance played a critical role in estate planning to either pay off or avoid estate taxes. Due to the raising of exemptions to a sizable degree including both on a federal and New York state level, people now utilize life insurance to achieve various goals. This…