Estate Planning

"Decedent" is a legal term that refers to a person who has died with unsatisfied legal obligations.

If you are considering engaging in estate planning or you may be inheriting assets, it is important to understand what the step-up in [...]

There are various benefits to creating a testamentary trust. This article discusses the benefits of adding a testamentary trust to your estate plan.

A charitable lead annuity trust (CLAT) is an estate planning tool whereby a person creates a trust that initially benefits a [...]

If you are a high-net-worth individual, it’s essential to have a comprehensive estate plan in place. However, every family’s [...]

If you are planning to leave an investment property to loved ones, a 1031 exchange may be a helpful estate planning tool for you. [...]

After losing a loved one, consider the best way to honor them and their life. Sometimes, a traditional funeral is not the best fit. Today, there are many [...]

You may wonder if there’s anything you shouldn’t include in your will. The answer is yes. There are some things that you should [...]

A life estate often comes up in discussions of estate and Medicaid planning. It is a form of joint ownership that allows one person to remain in a house until his or her death, when it passes [...]

Accumulated frequent flier miles can be valuable assets, but what happens to those miles after somene dies? Can a spouse or other heirs inherit them, or do the miles simply evaporate like a [...]

You may have heard of the terms “springing” and “non-springing” power of attorney and wonder what they mean.

As the recent death of Anne Heche shows us, not having a will can place a significant burden on your children and cause undesirable [...]

In many cases, you would tell your beneficiaries that you have made a trust for them. However, this is not always desirable - and this is where a “quiet” trust may be helpful.

Even if you've created an estate plan, are you sure you included everything you need to? There are certain provisions that people often forget to put in in a will or estate plan that can have [...]

Planning your own funeral arrangements can assist your loved ones in an emotionally challenging time, while also protecting them from [...]

There are some documents that you will want to hang on to forever and some that you should keep for a few years.

If you have ever been admitted to the hospital, you have likely been asked to sign a health care proxy form.

Following the death of a family member, you may find yourself needing to sort through many possessions accumulated over the deceased’s lifetime. An estate sale is one way to distribute, [...]

Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs) ­are a mechanism by which wealthier individuals and couples can transfer appreciating assets to their heirs and minimize gift or estate taxes.

Saying goodbye to a loved one is heartbreaking. Making final arrangements can be overwhelming, and knowing what you are allowed to do to fulfill your loved one's wishes is important — but it [...]

The Internal Revenue Service has issued new guidance extending the time that executors have to elect portability.

An executor, also called a personal representative, is the person responsible for managing the administration of a deceased person's estate.

Collecting art or other valuable items can be a passion for many people. Once you have accumulated a sizable collection, what do you want to happen to it after you pass away?  

Unfortunately, not all families get along. If you are having problems with one of your children, you may not want them to benefit from your estate. There are several strategies for dealing [...]

If you want to pass money to future generations without having it subject to gift and estate taxes, then a dynasty trust may be right for you.  

A Roth IRA does not have to be used as just a retirement plan; it can also be a way to transfer assets tax-free to the next generation.

Sports fans with season tickets may want their families to enjoy the tickets after they are gone, but passing on these tickets is not always simple.  

Running a small business can keep you busy, but it should not keep you from creating an estate plan. Not having a plan in place can cause problems for your business and your family after you [...]

As a trust beneficiary, you may feel that you are at the mercy of the trustee, but depending on the type of trust, beneficiaries may have rights to ensure the trust is properly managed.

We've all been warned about protecting ourselves from identity theft, but one group of victims can't take action to defend themselves—the dead. There are steps that you can take to discourage [...]

While an inheritance is usually desired, there are some circumstances in which it might be unwelcome. If you don’t want an inheritance, you must disclaim it. 

One of the many factors to consider when setting up a trust is whether to make it a grantor trust or a non-grantor trust. While a grantor trust is more common, a non-grantor trust can be [...]

The estate and gift tax exemption is set to be cut in half in 2026. Proper planning may be necessary to make sure you are taking full advantage of the current exemption and aren’t negatively [...]

Some parents, fearful of how a large inheritance will affect their heirs, set up what are known as “incentive trusts” that ensure that the trust funds support positive behavior and discourage [...]

Acting as an agent under a power of attorney is a big responsibility and it isn’t something everyone can take on. It is possible to resign or refuse the position.

Serving as a trustee of a trust can be a huge responsibility, so trustees are entitled to compensation for their work. The amount of compensation depends on the type of trustee and the [...]

If your family contains opposite-gender parents in the first marriage for each and one or more kids, all healthy and thriving, your estate plan will probably be pretty straightforward. But if [...]

What happens if you become incapacitated and are unable to voice your opinion on your health care? If you don’t have a health care proxy or guardian in place, state law chooses who can make [...]

With the fate of the estate tax exemption uncertain, you may want to use the current large exemption to transfer assets to a trust to benefit your spouse. A spousal lifetime access trust [...]

A power of attorney may seem like a simple document, but there are several important decisions that need to be made when creating one.

If you have close relatives who are citizens of another country, you might receive a gift or inheritance from them at some point. While you usually do not have to pay taxes to the IRS for [...]

Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) are an important tool for small business owners, but they can also be useful in estate planning. An LLC can help you pass assets to your children while [...]

While you likely have the best of intentions regarding how you want your estate distributed when you die or your affairs handled should you become incapacitated, without proper planning your [...]

When interest rates are low, intrafamily loans can be a good way to assist children with purchasing a house or a family business, and in certain circumstances they can be used to gift money to [...]

In the event you lose your house in a natural disaster or through another calamity, it is important that your estate planning and other important documents are beyond reach and easily [...]

You aren't technically required to hire a lawyer to draft a will, but failing to do so could lead to costly problems for your family and other heirs.

For a variety of reasons, people sometimes want some or all of their assets to pass directly to specific individuals upon their deaths, outside of probate.  POD and TOD accounts are one way to [...]

When you need someone else to care for money or property on your behalf, that person (or organization) is called a fiduciary. 

Marriage is supposed to be “until death do us part,” but after one spouse dies, is it possible to have the marriage annulled? It can be done, but only in certain circumstances. 

A number of tax proposals being considered in Congress could significantly affect gifting and estate plans for people with with larger estates -- over $3.5 million. 

It is important to get any agreements about inheritance in writing. Providing services to someone does not automatically entitle you to a portion of their estate. 

When a person declares bankruptcy, an individual retirement account (IRA) is one of the assets that is beyond the reach of creditors, but what about an IRA that has been inherited? 

Being asked to serve as the trustee of the trust of a family member is a great honor. But being a trustee is also a heavy responsibility. Here are six questions to ask before saying "yes."

While the current estate tax exemption is quite high, a closely held family business may put your estate over the limit. Careful planning is necessary to lower or completely avoid the tax, and [...]

Most people want to pass their assets to their children or grandchildren, but naming a minor as a beneficiary can have unintended consequences. It is important to make a plan that doesn’t [...]

Do you have a will? A durable power of attorney? A health care proxy? If not, why not? Failure to create an estate plan risks causing discord in your family for generations to come.

More and more of the music, movies, and books we own exist only online, in digital form. What happens to these collections after the owner's death?  You may be surprised at the answer.

Directed trusts can be a useful estate planning tool, allowing you to place your family’s assets in a trust but benefit from the expertise of an advisor who knows more about the handling of [...]

Passing assets to your grandchildren can be a great way to ensure their future is provided for, and a generation-skipping trust can help you accomplish this goal while reducing estate taxes [...]

Parents of 2020 seniors and parents of young adults should listen to this podcast so their child is prepared in the event of an unforeseen emergency or crisis.

When you’re planning your estate, among other things, you decide who should inherit your assets. You choose your beneficiaries, typically your children, grandchildren, or other close relatives. [...]

A Special Needs Trust is tailored to help a beneficiary with special needs receive an inheritance without jeopardizing their current or future public needs-tested benefits, such as Medicaid or [...]

The second way which is the topic in this article is a fully discretionary trust, often called an “Asset Protection” Trust or a “Sentry” Trust.

Maybe you grew up without much. You worked hard. You earned a good education. You succeeded in life even though the streets weren’t paved with gold where you grew up. Maybe you even grew up in a [...]

We here at Ergood Law feel that it is important to have the right protection in place so you can always help your child.

Beneficiary designations and other non-probate transfers are an often-overlooked part of estate planning. They are overlooked by clients and sometimes even by professionals.

People are living longer and are having children later in life. Due to this combination of demographic factors, many more people are in the “Sandwich Generation.”

It’s important to consider whom you’d want to get your assets when you die. Most of us have an idea of whom we’d choose. But, it’s also important to consider who should get those assets if your [...]

Estate Planning is critical to making sure your wishes are carried out. This series focuses on how an Estate Plan could be challenged. This series will show the importance of doing Estate [...]

Some people plan their estates carefully. Some people don’t have an estate plan at all. That’s called dying intestate. In that situation, the state in which they live at their death has a default [...]

Often, the smallest things have the most sentimental value. Your grandmother’s silverware or your grandfather’s railroad watch could connect you to them in a special way. Your mother’s ring or [...]

Written by Attorneys for the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys A Secret Agent may be very important to protecting the nation. Your Agent is just as important for your protection. An [...]

Article written by the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys The new tax law doubled the amount that can be passed free of federal estate taxation, at least through 2025. In 2018, [...]

Often, people think estate planning is just for those who are elderly. While the elderly certainly need estate planning, estate planning is for anyone who cares what happens to them, their stuff, [...]

There are many good reasons to use trusts. Trusts avoid the probate process, which is a public process to change title of assets from the deceased person to the new recipient. Trusts may be [...]