Ok. I know the economy stinks. Not only does it stink in the United States, but it stinks throughout the world. An article out of the U.K. demonstrates the point as author Sion Barry writes in Wales Online that people are not thinking about their retirements plans. Instead, they are worried about debt. Mr. Barry makes…
Category: Probate
Estate Planning: Formal and Informal Estate Administration
Although the law is different in every state, and you should talk to your estate administration lawyer in your state about the process, it is true that many states of two, basic kind of estate administration procedures: (1) formal and (2) informal. What is the difference between formal and informal estate administration? I will apologize…
Estate Planning: What is Probate?
Many clients have asked me: “what is probate”? My answer: it depends. As an qualified estate planning lawyer will tell you, on a basic level, the term probate is merely a court proceeding(s) in which a court wraps-up or concludes all the legal and financial matters of deceased person. Think about it: when somebody dies,…
Estate Planning | Handling Estate Cash Responsibly
As I discussed in my prior post, a Personal Representative must properly manage the estate assets. The court and the beneficiaries of the estate will all be paying attention to make sure that Personal Representative is acting in the best interest of the estate. The Personal Representative must act as a fiduciary and handle estate…
Estate Planning | Managing the Estate Assets Responsibly
Estate and retirement planning takes work. Any estate planning lawyer knows this and will explain it to his clients. One of the key aspects of estate planning is thinking about how to manage estate assets in a responsible manner. The laws in many states provide that a Personal Representative has clearly laid-out duties and responsibilities. Foremost,…
Estate Planning | Avoiding Conflicts of Interest
One of the ways to avoid conflicts of interest in estate administration is to have open communications channels between the Personal Representative and the beneficiaries. Conflicts such as Will Contests or other estate administration lawsuits do arise. Believe it or not, beneficiaries do fight over money. However these conflicts can be minimized with some effort…
Retirement Planning | Managing an Estate Inventory
When conducting an estate administration, it is important to keep in mind that the estate inventory only includes assets of the estate that can be probated. I discussed what “probate” means in a prior post. Many times, according to your state laws, estate assets will go into the estate by virtue of how they are titled….
Estate Planning | Proving a Will
As I discussed in my prior post, a beneficiary of someone’s estate can challenge the validity of a person’s Will in a court of law. Fortunately, there are ways to show that the Will is the actual instrument that a deceased person made when the personal representative and estate planning attorney initially submit the Will…
Estate Planning | Challenging a Will
The goal of estate planning is that there won’t be any room for a Will contest. However, even the most effective estate planning and drafting of a Will or Trust instrument cannot guarantee that a disgruntled heir may challenge the validity of a Will. In most states, Will contests can only be brought by parties…
Estate Planning | The Estate Timeline: “What You Need to Do”
The time period related to estate administration is different with every estate plan and every kind of estate administration. Sometimes, estate administration and probate can go quickly and sometimes it goes less quickly. Often, though, things go much smoother and efficiently if you discuss how you would like your estate administered with your estate…