Archive for the ‘Law’ Category
Charles Shaw asked:
Vallejo Family law is the name given to the branch of civil law that a family lawyer or a Vallejo family law lawyer covers. Basically, a Vallejo family law lawyer spends 99% of their fime with divorces, but here’s what a Vallejo family law lawyer would say if you asked them what they do…
I handle all sorts of law including, but not limited to: the legal relationships among family members, including husbands, wives, parents, children, and domestic partners. As a Vallejo family law lawyer, I specialize in the family law relationships which encompass adoption, child custody, visitation rights, and domestic violence. As a Vallejo family law lawyer, I also litigate cases involving divorce, juvenile dependency and delinquency, marital property rights, support obligations, and paternity.
If you’re thinking of meeting with a Vallejo family law lawyer, this is a comprehensive list of everything you might need
1. Information about your marital status:
All marriage information (past and present).
2. Personal information about you and your spouse:
Full names and dates of birth of all your children (natural and adopted).
Full legal names and contact information.
Date and place of births.
3. Summary of your assets:
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the location of safety deposit box and important papers.
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the Location of cash, bank accounts, securities, deeds, etc., with account numbers.
4. Summary of debts
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer about any any debts, such as loans, guarantees, promissory notes, mortgages, and amount owed and to whom (include held by you for others).
5. Outline of legacies and legatees.
Do you have alternative legatees (beneficiaries) in case designated legatees predecease you or cannot be located?
To whom do you want specific bequests to go and the details of each bequest?
Who are important persons or organizations in your life and why?
In the event that you and your spouse (and/or children) are killed in a common disaster (e.g. auto or plane crash), how do you want your estate to be distributed?
Do you have minor children or disabled children? At what age do you want your children to have access to their bequest?
Do you have any forced heirs (children who have not attained age 24 or are not physically or mentally capable of caring for their estates)?
Have you considered setting up a testamentary trust to have some or all of your assets in your estate managed on your death on behalf of your spouse, children or other persons?
6. Names of people in your will who will represent your interests?
The names of your executor, trustee, lawyer and guardian for minor children with alternates and their contact information.
Do they know that you have designated them and the location of your legal documents.
7. Other information to obtain:
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer if you have considered a “living will” and “power of attorney”?
Where do you want to leave the original copy of your will? (i.e. safety deposit box, lawyer, trust company).
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the names and addresses of your financial or personal/business advisers, lawyer and/or trust company
What are your burial wishes and funeral service instructions?
Have you discussed your will with a tax accountant and financial planner to make sure you have taken advantage of all tax and estate planning strategies available?
Does your spouse have a will? If so, when was it signed, where is it located, and when was it last reviewed?
Major Eilertson
Vallejo Family law is the name given to the branch of civil law that a family lawyer or a Vallejo family law lawyer covers. Basically, a Vallejo family law lawyer spends 99% of their fime with divorces, but here’s what a Vallejo family law lawyer would say if you asked them what they do…
I handle all sorts of law including, but not limited to: the legal relationships among family members, including husbands, wives, parents, children, and domestic partners. As a Vallejo family law lawyer, I specialize in the family law relationships which encompass adoption, child custody, visitation rights, and domestic violence. As a Vallejo family law lawyer, I also litigate cases involving divorce, juvenile dependency and delinquency, marital property rights, support obligations, and paternity.
If you’re thinking of meeting with a Vallejo family law lawyer, this is a comprehensive list of everything you might need
1. Information about your marital status:
All marriage information (past and present).
2. Personal information about you and your spouse:
Full names and dates of birth of all your children (natural and adopted).
Full legal names and contact information.
Date and place of births.
3. Summary of your assets:
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the location of safety deposit box and important papers.
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the Location of cash, bank accounts, securities, deeds, etc., with account numbers.
4. Summary of debts
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer about any any debts, such as loans, guarantees, promissory notes, mortgages, and amount owed and to whom (include held by you for others).
5. Outline of legacies and legatees.
Do you have alternative legatees (beneficiaries) in case designated legatees predecease you or cannot be located?
To whom do you want specific bequests to go and the details of each bequest?
Who are important persons or organizations in your life and why?
In the event that you and your spouse (and/or children) are killed in a common disaster (e.g. auto or plane crash), how do you want your estate to be distributed?
Do you have minor children or disabled children? At what age do you want your children to have access to their bequest?
Do you have any forced heirs (children who have not attained age 24 or are not physically or mentally capable of caring for their estates)?
Have you considered setting up a testamentary trust to have some or all of your assets in your estate managed on your death on behalf of your spouse, children or other persons?
6. Names of people in your will who will represent your interests?
The names of your executor, trustee, lawyer and guardian for minor children with alternates and their contact information.
Do they know that you have designated them and the location of your legal documents.
7. Other information to obtain:
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer if you have considered a “living will” and “power of attorney”?
Where do you want to leave the original copy of your will? (i.e. safety deposit box, lawyer, trust company).
You need to tell your Vallejo family law lawyer the names and addresses of your financial or personal/business advisers, lawyer and/or trust company
What are your burial wishes and funeral service instructions?
Have you discussed your will with a tax accountant and financial planner to make sure you have taken advantage of all tax and estate planning strategies available?
Does your spouse have a will? If so, when was it signed, where is it located, and when was it last reviewed?
Major Eilertson
Kevin Von Tungeln asked:
When hotel heiress and billionaire Leona Helmsley died in 2007, her pet Maltese, Trouble, became the beneficiary of a $12 million pet trust that Helmsley had established as part of her estate plan. Mrs. Helmsley cared very deeply for her animal companion. Although she left money in her will for Trouble, she failed to secure a legally enforceable pet trust to ensure that her beloved Trouble would be provided for even after her death.
Most pet owners won’t have the resources available to provide for their pets to the extent that Mrs. Helmsley did. In fact, according to Lawyers Weekly USA, the average amount left to pets is closer to $25,000. But, like Mrs. Helmsley, most pet owners are concerned about providing long-term care for their pets, and want to make sure that their wishes are carried out in the event of their death or disability.
As a pet owner in California, you can create a pet trust that will provide for the care of your “beloved pet” when you are no longer able to care for the pet yourself. Pet trusts are more secure than simply leaving money in your will, and provide specific instruction for the caretaker and beneficiary of the trust. To begin planning for the care of your pet, you should identify a family member or friend who you would trust to care for your pet and who would be willing to provide for the animal’s care. A pet trust allows you to designate this trusted person as your pet’s trustee. In California, your trustee will be legally obligated to make arrangements for the proper care of your pet, according to your instruction. They will also hold the money and/or property that you transfer to the trust for the benefit of the pet. In addition to the pet’s trustee, you may also designate a caregiver, or beneficiary, who will be responsible for caring for the pet over the lifespan of the animal.
Because California pet trusts are legally enforceable arrangements, as a pet owner, you can be assured that the instruction you provide regarding your pet’s care will be carried out. A trust can be very specific, so it is important to discuss your pet’s health needs, care, and routine with your designated caregiver. For example, if your cat is allergic to a particular brand of food, or your dog needs to be bathed once a week, this can be specified in the trust agreement.
As a pet owner, you know your pet’s particular habits and needs better than anyone else. With a pet trust, you can describe the kind of care your pet should have, and you can list the trusted people who would be willing to provide that care. If you are a pet owner who wants to establish a pet trust, or otherwise provide long-term care for your pet, a qualified estate planning attorney who has experience creating pet trusts in California will be able to help you understand your pet trust planning options, and will be able to assist you in designing a pet trust that meets your needs and those of your pets.
Dixie Peon
When hotel heiress and billionaire Leona Helmsley died in 2007, her pet Maltese, Trouble, became the beneficiary of a $12 million pet trust that Helmsley had established as part of her estate plan. Mrs. Helmsley cared very deeply for her animal companion. Although she left money in her will for Trouble, she failed to secure a legally enforceable pet trust to ensure that her beloved Trouble would be provided for even after her death.
Most pet owners won’t have the resources available to provide for their pets to the extent that Mrs. Helmsley did. In fact, according to Lawyers Weekly USA, the average amount left to pets is closer to $25,000. But, like Mrs. Helmsley, most pet owners are concerned about providing long-term care for their pets, and want to make sure that their wishes are carried out in the event of their death or disability.
As a pet owner in California, you can create a pet trust that will provide for the care of your “beloved pet” when you are no longer able to care for the pet yourself. Pet trusts are more secure than simply leaving money in your will, and provide specific instruction for the caretaker and beneficiary of the trust. To begin planning for the care of your pet, you should identify a family member or friend who you would trust to care for your pet and who would be willing to provide for the animal’s care. A pet trust allows you to designate this trusted person as your pet’s trustee. In California, your trustee will be legally obligated to make arrangements for the proper care of your pet, according to your instruction. They will also hold the money and/or property that you transfer to the trust for the benefit of the pet. In addition to the pet’s trustee, you may also designate a caregiver, or beneficiary, who will be responsible for caring for the pet over the lifespan of the animal.
Because California pet trusts are legally enforceable arrangements, as a pet owner, you can be assured that the instruction you provide regarding your pet’s care will be carried out. A trust can be very specific, so it is important to discuss your pet’s health needs, care, and routine with your designated caregiver. For example, if your cat is allergic to a particular brand of food, or your dog needs to be bathed once a week, this can be specified in the trust agreement.
As a pet owner, you know your pet’s particular habits and needs better than anyone else. With a pet trust, you can describe the kind of care your pet should have, and you can list the trusted people who would be willing to provide that care. If you are a pet owner who wants to establish a pet trust, or otherwise provide long-term care for your pet, a qualified estate planning attorney who has experience creating pet trusts in California will be able to help you understand your pet trust planning options, and will be able to assist you in designing a pet trust that meets your needs and those of your pets.
Dixie Peon
Apurva Shree asked:
Family matters are very delicate, especially when the custody of children is involved into the legal battle of divorce. In order to ensure the safety of your children and the fair resolution of your case you would need the best family attorney around. Before you go ahead, first, decide the exact services you would require from your family law attorney. Will you need him/her to get fully involved in the case? What are all the options offered by the different ones in your list? Are they giving you alternatives to solve the case, or are they going for just mediation? Are you willing to financially exert yourself to get the best attorney, or are you dealing with a friendly divorce allowing you to relax over fee issues?
Where To Find The Best Family Attorney?
The best family attorney can be found through Lawyer Referral Services, the Internet, ads and listings, or through the word of mouth. The American Bar Association provides lists and web links to lawyer referral services, where you will find all the attorneys registered in each state. On the Internet you will have to search different sites with links to small and big agencies or you could try popular websites like attorneyfind.com, legalmatch.com or lawyers.com. Ads and listings on the other hand will give you a better idea on what the attorneys specialize in and what they feel to be their strengths.
Among all these research methods the word of mouth will help you to take the final decision. Ask friends or relatives that have previously used the services of a family divorce attorney for example. From their experience you will be able to judge if you are about to hire the best family attorney, or just a mediocre one. Ask them how they found their family attorney and whether they are satisfied with the results.
What To Look For
The best family attorney will be the one who will be professional as well as emotionally supportive. You should be able to communicate at ease with them and feel confident that they will be able to represent you in court. Good communication between the two of you should be essential and you should also be able to trust the family law attorney’s capacity to express in legal terms your wishes and concerns. Your attorney should already have experience with similar cases and should be able to give you a variety of particulars of other cases he/she might have dealt with to win the case.
Freddy Lindie
Family matters are very delicate, especially when the custody of children is involved into the legal battle of divorce. In order to ensure the safety of your children and the fair resolution of your case you would need the best family attorney around. Before you go ahead, first, decide the exact services you would require from your family law attorney. Will you need him/her to get fully involved in the case? What are all the options offered by the different ones in your list? Are they giving you alternatives to solve the case, or are they going for just mediation? Are you willing to financially exert yourself to get the best attorney, or are you dealing with a friendly divorce allowing you to relax over fee issues?
Where To Find The Best Family Attorney?
The best family attorney can be found through Lawyer Referral Services, the Internet, ads and listings, or through the word of mouth. The American Bar Association provides lists and web links to lawyer referral services, where you will find all the attorneys registered in each state. On the Internet you will have to search different sites with links to small and big agencies or you could try popular websites like attorneyfind.com, legalmatch.com or lawyers.com. Ads and listings on the other hand will give you a better idea on what the attorneys specialize in and what they feel to be their strengths.
Among all these research methods the word of mouth will help you to take the final decision. Ask friends or relatives that have previously used the services of a family divorce attorney for example. From their experience you will be able to judge if you are about to hire the best family attorney, or just a mediocre one. Ask them how they found their family attorney and whether they are satisfied with the results.
What To Look For
The best family attorney will be the one who will be professional as well as emotionally supportive. You should be able to communicate at ease with them and feel confident that they will be able to represent you in court. Good communication between the two of you should be essential and you should also be able to trust the family law attorney’s capacity to express in legal terms your wishes and concerns. Your attorney should already have experience with similar cases and should be able to give you a variety of particulars of other cases he/she might have dealt with to win the case.
Freddy Lindie
Steven W Allen asked:
Your living trust is much more than just a will that says which heirs get what percentage or which specific items that you leave behind should go to whom. A living trust details how and when heirs are to receive their inheritance, who is to take over any businesses in question, and many crucial issues of your estate. A living trust is very specific in how an estate is to be dealt with. Therefore, the choice of a trustee for your living trust is a very important decision in your estate planning process.
Living Trusts: Choosing a Trusted Friend
When choosing a person to be the trustee of your living will, you need to answer on question:
Who could step into my place and confidently act as I would in carrying out my wishes?
It is vitally important to choose someone that you have full faith and confidence in. You should feel at ease that he or she would carry out your requests as they are written in your estate planning documents. Some typical choices include a close family friend, close family member, child, or trusted nephew or niece.
While you may feel completely secure in trusting this huge responsibility for carrying out your wishes to a family member, there are several situations when that is not wise or possible. In that case, your estate planning wishes can be addressed by a trusted outsider.
Living Trusts: Choosing an Outside Trustee
If you do not have a close friend or relative that you feel comfortable leaving this job to, or if by selecting one of the heirs will cause conflict, then there are other options. You can hire an outside trustee like your bank, a trust company, your lawyer, or an expert estate planning attorney.
These professionals are well versed in what it requires to be a trustee and can often work more expediently and effectively, which saves the heirs money and time. While there are many benefits to not having a family member involved as the trustee of your living trust, there are also some drawbacks to using a bank or trust company as your trustee. For instance, you may find higher fees, and a minimal estate value of around $700,000.
No matter whom you choose, you want to be sure that you have full confidence in them to do exactly as you want, no matter what other people say. There may be heirs who are unhappy with the terms and conditions of the living trust and will try to sway your representative to do as they want. Knowing that you have a strong, trustworthy individual protecting your wishes will provide peace of mind.
Chau Lalin
Your living trust is much more than just a will that says which heirs get what percentage or which specific items that you leave behind should go to whom. A living trust details how and when heirs are to receive their inheritance, who is to take over any businesses in question, and many crucial issues of your estate. A living trust is very specific in how an estate is to be dealt with. Therefore, the choice of a trustee for your living trust is a very important decision in your estate planning process.
Living Trusts: Choosing a Trusted Friend
When choosing a person to be the trustee of your living will, you need to answer on question:
Who could step into my place and confidently act as I would in carrying out my wishes?
It is vitally important to choose someone that you have full faith and confidence in. You should feel at ease that he or she would carry out your requests as they are written in your estate planning documents. Some typical choices include a close family friend, close family member, child, or trusted nephew or niece.
While you may feel completely secure in trusting this huge responsibility for carrying out your wishes to a family member, there are several situations when that is not wise or possible. In that case, your estate planning wishes can be addressed by a trusted outsider.
Living Trusts: Choosing an Outside Trustee
If you do not have a close friend or relative that you feel comfortable leaving this job to, or if by selecting one of the heirs will cause conflict, then there are other options. You can hire an outside trustee like your bank, a trust company, your lawyer, or an expert estate planning attorney.
These professionals are well versed in what it requires to be a trustee and can often work more expediently and effectively, which saves the heirs money and time. While there are many benefits to not having a family member involved as the trustee of your living trust, there are also some drawbacks to using a bank or trust company as your trustee. For instance, you may find higher fees, and a minimal estate value of around $700,000.
No matter whom you choose, you want to be sure that you have full confidence in them to do exactly as you want, no matter what other people say. There may be heirs who are unhappy with the terms and conditions of the living trust and will try to sway your representative to do as they want. Knowing that you have a strong, trustworthy individual protecting your wishes will provide peace of mind.
Chau Lalin
Wycliffe Williams asked:
Is the day upon us when we need to vote reform family courts to support shared parenting? It’s a sad day when the parent who places the best interests of the child first-loses in court!
Many times their loss comes about only because they don’t know how to make their best case. And their attorneys are just as bad!
Two child custody lawyers with over 30 years each in the child custody field have combined their decades of experience to produce the awesome book “2006 Custody Strategies.”
They have been expert witnesses, custody evaluators and consultants. These two authors are also editors of a national publication on custody matters. They have stuffed a tremendous amount of information into this book.
A few of the chapters are, “Most frequently Made Error.” The authors have expressed shock that even attorneys who are caught up in custody battles themselves don’t know this single most important fact. They call it the best kept secret in the world.
Another chapter, “The Single Biggest False Assumption,” zeroes in on a crucial assumption that all and sundry run after as if in thrall of some Merlin.
Would you like to know 14 strategies that you can use in order to make a strong case for yourself? Of course you would. Strategy #1… you’ll have to get the book!
It is a travesty when a child is manipulated and brainwashed into turning against the other parent. It is truly a sad day when this happens. The authors have included a brilliant chapter called, “The Bribed Or Manipulated Child.”
If you believe that an evaluation was biased, or maybe even incomplete or just downright inaccurate, what can you do? They have included an excellent chapter on this very thing.
Are your funds tight? Are you cutting it close to the bone? Don’t worry, you’re not alone, trust me! They even have a wonderful chapter on the costs you can expect. And how to control them.
The authors have included what I believe to be the best bonus ever! We live in an ever changing world. Laws are enacted, policies are done away with and a new way of doing things is adopted.
They review and update whenever necessary. And those updates are free. When you purchase this book you are always current and up to date! That alone is worth the price of the book.
Danielle Lichter
Is the day upon us when we need to vote reform family courts to support shared parenting? It’s a sad day when the parent who places the best interests of the child first-loses in court!
Many times their loss comes about only because they don’t know how to make their best case. And their attorneys are just as bad!
Two child custody lawyers with over 30 years each in the child custody field have combined their decades of experience to produce the awesome book “2006 Custody Strategies.”
They have been expert witnesses, custody evaluators and consultants. These two authors are also editors of a national publication on custody matters. They have stuffed a tremendous amount of information into this book.
A few of the chapters are, “Most frequently Made Error.” The authors have expressed shock that even attorneys who are caught up in custody battles themselves don’t know this single most important fact. They call it the best kept secret in the world.
Another chapter, “The Single Biggest False Assumption,” zeroes in on a crucial assumption that all and sundry run after as if in thrall of some Merlin.
Would you like to know 14 strategies that you can use in order to make a strong case for yourself? Of course you would. Strategy #1… you’ll have to get the book!
It is a travesty when a child is manipulated and brainwashed into turning against the other parent. It is truly a sad day when this happens. The authors have included a brilliant chapter called, “The Bribed Or Manipulated Child.”
If you believe that an evaluation was biased, or maybe even incomplete or just downright inaccurate, what can you do? They have included an excellent chapter on this very thing.
Are your funds tight? Are you cutting it close to the bone? Don’t worry, you’re not alone, trust me! They even have a wonderful chapter on the costs you can expect. And how to control them.
The authors have included what I believe to be the best bonus ever! We live in an ever changing world. Laws are enacted, policies are done away with and a new way of doing things is adopted.
They review and update whenever necessary. And those updates are free. When you purchase this book you are always current and up to date! That alone is worth the price of the book.
Danielle Lichter
Steven W Allen asked:
A living trust will not only protect your loved ones from difficult, costly and time-consuming legal procedures like probate, it may even protect you from the similar legal issues during your own lifetime. A living trust can be used in case of your incapacitation, whether it is temporary or permanent. It is a legal document that can be put to good use during serious illness, not just in the case of death.
What Could Happen Without a Living Trust?
If you are ever involved in an accident or a sudden on-set debilitating illness, you may not be able to speak for yourself or take care of your own financial affairs. Another person, who realizes that you are in this condition, may take it upon himself or herself to take care of your financial interests. By petitioning the court, without any objections, this person could be named conservator of your financial and health decisions. You are particularly at risk for situations like this if family members are not nearby.
In this type of situation, your entire assets will be available to and at the whim of another person, not of your choosing. A living trust can prevent this.
You can appoint a trustee to look after your assets and health care decisions and make sure that the proper safeguards and conditions are in place. Without a structured living trust, your assets are at risk.
Someone who has been named your conservator could:
- Sell off your assets
- Make medical decisions on your behalf
- Purchase things in your name
- Transfer money indiscriminately
- Damage your credit
- Make your life miserable
Once a conservator status has been legally given by a judge, it is very difficult, costly and time-consuming to revoke. Unless you can clearly prove that you have indeed improved to the point of being able to take over your finances again, and without question, the conservator status may not be waived.
Delaying Estate Planning is Natural
Since no one likes to admit that death could happen at any time, we often procrastinate when it comes to final arrangements like wills, estate planning and living trusts. However, it is not just death that could cause a living trust to be activated. This document can also protect you from unscrupulous individuals at a time when you are most vulnerable.
Don’t delay another day. Pick up the phone and arrange to meet with an expert estate planning attorney to put a living trust in place for your well-being and that of your heirs. The sense of peace that this single document inspires is a benefit to enjoy while you are healthy and able.
Monty Dunavant
A living trust will not only protect your loved ones from difficult, costly and time-consuming legal procedures like probate, it may even protect you from the similar legal issues during your own lifetime. A living trust can be used in case of your incapacitation, whether it is temporary or permanent. It is a legal document that can be put to good use during serious illness, not just in the case of death.
What Could Happen Without a Living Trust?
If you are ever involved in an accident or a sudden on-set debilitating illness, you may not be able to speak for yourself or take care of your own financial affairs. Another person, who realizes that you are in this condition, may take it upon himself or herself to take care of your financial interests. By petitioning the court, without any objections, this person could be named conservator of your financial and health decisions. You are particularly at risk for situations like this if family members are not nearby.
In this type of situation, your entire assets will be available to and at the whim of another person, not of your choosing. A living trust can prevent this.
You can appoint a trustee to look after your assets and health care decisions and make sure that the proper safeguards and conditions are in place. Without a structured living trust, your assets are at risk.
Someone who has been named your conservator could:
- Sell off your assets
- Make medical decisions on your behalf
- Purchase things in your name
- Transfer money indiscriminately
- Damage your credit
- Make your life miserable
Once a conservator status has been legally given by a judge, it is very difficult, costly and time-consuming to revoke. Unless you can clearly prove that you have indeed improved to the point of being able to take over your finances again, and without question, the conservator status may not be waived.
Delaying Estate Planning is Natural
Since no one likes to admit that death could happen at any time, we often procrastinate when it comes to final arrangements like wills, estate planning and living trusts. However, it is not just death that could cause a living trust to be activated. This document can also protect you from unscrupulous individuals at a time when you are most vulnerable.
Don’t delay another day. Pick up the phone and arrange to meet with an expert estate planning attorney to put a living trust in place for your well-being and that of your heirs. The sense of peace that this single document inspires is a benefit to enjoy while you are healthy and able.
Monty Dunavant
Daniela Lungu asked:
DO I NEED A TRUST??
By: Daniela Lungu
Most people when faced with this question, or whether they have an “estate” get a blank look in their eyes, and say no, but would be surprised to learn that they do have an estate and would benefit from this important service.
General Rule: If you have an estate valued at over $100,000 you should have a trust.
“Estate” Includes:
Value of all Real Property Interests Time Shares Boats, Cars, Other Personal Recreational Vehicles Business interests including partnerships, sole proprietorships, corporations, LLP and LLC interests Value of all Brokerage, Corporate Stocks, Corporate Bonds, Mutual Funds, Treasury Bills, and Savings Bonds Retirement Assets including: IRA, Keogh, 401(k), 403(b)Qualified Plan, Employer Plan, Deferred Comp, Annuity, Pension Plan, Roth IRA, Value of all Insurance Policies – Whole and Term Amounts in Checking, Savings, CD’s, Money Market Accounts Value of Notes and Deeds of Trust All other personal property including clothing, furnishings and other household goods.
Reasons for Planning:
Avoiding probate Minimizing estate taxes Self-directed distribution of wealth to heirs Proactive management of health and assets in the event of incapacity.
If you have considered any form of planning for the future, now is the time to speak with an Estate Planning Attorney to incorporate a Living Trust into your plan. Living Trusts allow you to control the transfer of your property and assets to your intended beneficiaries, assist in planning with significant tax advantages, and more. Using a properly prepared and funded Living Trust ensures that your beneficiaries can avoid the unpleasant and lengthy task of probate, which often fractures family relationships.
The preceding should not be considered tax or legal advice. Please consult with your financial and legal advisors for information appropriate to your specific circumstances.
Margarito Rhone
DO I NEED A TRUST??
By: Daniela Lungu
Most people when faced with this question, or whether they have an “estate” get a blank look in their eyes, and say no, but would be surprised to learn that they do have an estate and would benefit from this important service.
General Rule: If you have an estate valued at over $100,000 you should have a trust.
“Estate” Includes:
Value of all Real Property Interests Time Shares Boats, Cars, Other Personal Recreational Vehicles Business interests including partnerships, sole proprietorships, corporations, LLP and LLC interests Value of all Brokerage, Corporate Stocks, Corporate Bonds, Mutual Funds, Treasury Bills, and Savings Bonds Retirement Assets including: IRA, Keogh, 401(k), 403(b)Qualified Plan, Employer Plan, Deferred Comp, Annuity, Pension Plan, Roth IRA, Value of all Insurance Policies – Whole and Term Amounts in Checking, Savings, CD’s, Money Market Accounts Value of Notes and Deeds of Trust All other personal property including clothing, furnishings and other household goods.
Reasons for Planning:
Avoiding probate Minimizing estate taxes Self-directed distribution of wealth to heirs Proactive management of health and assets in the event of incapacity.
If you have considered any form of planning for the future, now is the time to speak with an Estate Planning Attorney to incorporate a Living Trust into your plan. Living Trusts allow you to control the transfer of your property and assets to your intended beneficiaries, assist in planning with significant tax advantages, and more. Using a properly prepared and funded Living Trust ensures that your beneficiaries can avoid the unpleasant and lengthy task of probate, which often fractures family relationships.
The preceding should not be considered tax or legal advice. Please consult with your financial and legal advisors for information appropriate to your specific circumstances.
Margarito Rhone
Martin Petroff asked:
Supplemental-needs trusts (SNTs) have become widely used planning tools for persons with disabilities. Such trusts, also referred to as special-needs trusts, are intended to enhance the lives of disabled individuals without jeopardizing their eligibility for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
The SNT will pay for the personal needs of beneficiaries, including luxuries and necessities. The trust assets may include cash, stocks and bonds, and a home, a condominium or cooperative residence. The following examples illustrate situations in which the SNT may be used:
• A parent, family member or friend may establish a supplemental-needs trust for a disabled person of any age without risking that person’s eligibility for public benefits. In such a case, Medicaid has no right to recover against assets remaining in the trust upon the death of the beneficiary. Such assets may be distributed according to instructions included in the trust agreement by the individual who funded the trust.
• A disabled person of any age may transfer his assets to the SNT for another disabled person under the age of sixty-five without disqualifying himself for Medicaid home care or nursing-home care.
• A SNT trust may be established for the benefit of a disabled person under the age of sixty five using that person’s own funds – without incurring a penalty period for Medicaid and SSI eligibility. Designated a’first-party trust,’ upon the death of the disabled beneficiary the State has a right to recover against the remaining funds in this, a ‘first-party trust,’ for whatever Medicaid charges were incurred by the individual. The law provides, however, that there are no limits on the amount of trust income or principal that may be spent on behalf of the disabled person during his lifetime. Please special Note below.
• Disabled persons of any age receiving community Medicaid services, including home care, adult-day care and prescription drugs, are now able to use virtually all of their income to pay for their living expenses by participating in a special SNT, a pooled-income trust, managed by a non-profit agency. It is no longer necessary for consumers to contribute their “excess” income to the Medicaid system as a “spend-down.” The pooled-income trust is proving to be a popular planning tool for persons in need of long-term health-care services for whom the excess-income option did not work because it would not allow them a sufficient amount of money to live in the community and qualify for Medicaid.
Note: The first-party SNT may be utilized only by disabled persons under the age of sixty-five who reside in the community. This planning option is currently not available to those disabled individuals residing in a nursing home or receiving special home-care services. However, on February 15, 2007 a class-action suit was filed on behalf of a fifty-three-year-old nursing-home resident who suffers severe agitation as a result of traumatic brain injuries. He requires 24-hour one-to-one care and the income available through the SNT helps provide the care. The government contends that the trust may be utilized for an individual receiving most Medicaid services at home, but disallows the use of the trust when the individual is receiving Medicaid nursing-home coverage. The class-action brief contends that the law provides that the trust may be utilized in both settings.
Stephen Granillo
Supplemental-needs trusts (SNTs) have become widely used planning tools for persons with disabilities. Such trusts, also referred to as special-needs trusts, are intended to enhance the lives of disabled individuals without jeopardizing their eligibility for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
The SNT will pay for the personal needs of beneficiaries, including luxuries and necessities. The trust assets may include cash, stocks and bonds, and a home, a condominium or cooperative residence. The following examples illustrate situations in which the SNT may be used:
• A parent, family member or friend may establish a supplemental-needs trust for a disabled person of any age without risking that person’s eligibility for public benefits. In such a case, Medicaid has no right to recover against assets remaining in the trust upon the death of the beneficiary. Such assets may be distributed according to instructions included in the trust agreement by the individual who funded the trust.
• A disabled person of any age may transfer his assets to the SNT for another disabled person under the age of sixty-five without disqualifying himself for Medicaid home care or nursing-home care.
• A SNT trust may be established for the benefit of a disabled person under the age of sixty five using that person’s own funds – without incurring a penalty period for Medicaid and SSI eligibility. Designated a’first-party trust,’ upon the death of the disabled beneficiary the State has a right to recover against the remaining funds in this, a ‘first-party trust,’ for whatever Medicaid charges were incurred by the individual. The law provides, however, that there are no limits on the amount of trust income or principal that may be spent on behalf of the disabled person during his lifetime. Please special Note below.
• Disabled persons of any age receiving community Medicaid services, including home care, adult-day care and prescription drugs, are now able to use virtually all of their income to pay for their living expenses by participating in a special SNT, a pooled-income trust, managed by a non-profit agency. It is no longer necessary for consumers to contribute their “excess” income to the Medicaid system as a “spend-down.” The pooled-income trust is proving to be a popular planning tool for persons in need of long-term health-care services for whom the excess-income option did not work because it would not allow them a sufficient amount of money to live in the community and qualify for Medicaid.
Note: The first-party SNT may be utilized only by disabled persons under the age of sixty-five who reside in the community. This planning option is currently not available to those disabled individuals residing in a nursing home or receiving special home-care services. However, on February 15, 2007 a class-action suit was filed on behalf of a fifty-three-year-old nursing-home resident who suffers severe agitation as a result of traumatic brain injuries. He requires 24-hour one-to-one care and the income available through the SNT helps provide the care. The government contends that the trust may be utilized for an individual receiving most Medicaid services at home, but disallows the use of the trust when the individual is receiving Medicaid nursing-home coverage. The class-action brief contends that the law provides that the trust may be utilized in both settings.
Stephen Granillo
Mitchell Miller asked:
An essential part of your estate plan is a living trust because a will is not enough to protect your estate from going through probate in the state in which you die. A living trust does protect your estate from going through probate. This is especially important if you own property in other states and countries.
The legal requirements of probate can be very costly and extremely aggravating for your heirs. A living trust will enable your heirs to avoid all of this unpleasantness.
The process of estate planning is helped to go smoothly by a good estate planning attorney. You should decide in advance a few important questions in order to help the estate planning process:
When you set up a living trust — while you (or you and your spouse) are alive and in good mental health. you (and your spouse) are the Trustee(s). In the trust you name Successor Trustees to take over when you are incapacitated or deceased.
You must decide who it is that you want to make the decision that you are no longer capable of handling your own affairs and that the Successor Trustees will take over?
Do you want one person such as your spouse to make that decision? More than one person? Your spouse and children? Your spouse and doctor? Two doctors? The choice is up to you, but think it through carefully.)
Your trust will always name a Successor Trustee, but have you considered whether you want to name Successor Trustees to serve as Co-Trustees?
For example, if you and your spouse have children from different marriages, you may want to ensure that neither set of children has power over the other set of children. One way to try to prevent this is to make sure there is always a separate Successor Trustee (serving as Co-Trustees) for each set of children so that neither set of children can be cut out of an inheritance.
You must decide to whom to leave family heirlooms?
This situation can cause real friction in the family. If you’ve promised your mother’s wedding ring to a daughter or a family portrait to a son, you need to specify these distributions in your trust.
If something should, heaven forbid, happen to your whole family, have you named alternate beneficiaries?
If there are no alternate beneficiaries named in your living trust, the legal designation that your “heirs at law” will be your alternate beneficiaries may be used by your estate planning attorney. This means that inheritance law decides who is next in line to inherit, which could result in a cousin you never heard of, or even hate, being named your heir.
Instead, you should ensure that your estate planning lawyer puts in your living trust specific family members, friends, and/or charities as alternate beneficiaries to cover this unlikely, but possible, situation.
The above information is NOT legal advice, only considerations for you to discuss with your own estate planning attorney. The providing of this material does not establish an attorney-client relationship.
Mindy Duncan
An essential part of your estate plan is a living trust because a will is not enough to protect your estate from going through probate in the state in which you die. A living trust does protect your estate from going through probate. This is especially important if you own property in other states and countries.
The legal requirements of probate can be very costly and extremely aggravating for your heirs. A living trust will enable your heirs to avoid all of this unpleasantness.
The process of estate planning is helped to go smoothly by a good estate planning attorney. You should decide in advance a few important questions in order to help the estate planning process:
When you set up a living trust — while you (or you and your spouse) are alive and in good mental health. you (and your spouse) are the Trustee(s). In the trust you name Successor Trustees to take over when you are incapacitated or deceased.
You must decide who it is that you want to make the decision that you are no longer capable of handling your own affairs and that the Successor Trustees will take over?
Do you want one person such as your spouse to make that decision? More than one person? Your spouse and children? Your spouse and doctor? Two doctors? The choice is up to you, but think it through carefully.)
Your trust will always name a Successor Trustee, but have you considered whether you want to name Successor Trustees to serve as Co-Trustees?
For example, if you and your spouse have children from different marriages, you may want to ensure that neither set of children has power over the other set of children. One way to try to prevent this is to make sure there is always a separate Successor Trustee (serving as Co-Trustees) for each set of children so that neither set of children can be cut out of an inheritance.
You must decide to whom to leave family heirlooms?
This situation can cause real friction in the family. If you’ve promised your mother’s wedding ring to a daughter or a family portrait to a son, you need to specify these distributions in your trust.
If something should, heaven forbid, happen to your whole family, have you named alternate beneficiaries?
If there are no alternate beneficiaries named in your living trust, the legal designation that your “heirs at law” will be your alternate beneficiaries may be used by your estate planning attorney. This means that inheritance law decides who is next in line to inherit, which could result in a cousin you never heard of, or even hate, being named your heir.
Instead, you should ensure that your estate planning lawyer puts in your living trust specific family members, friends, and/or charities as alternate beneficiaries to cover this unlikely, but possible, situation.
The above information is NOT legal advice, only considerations for you to discuss with your own estate planning attorney. The providing of this material does not establish an attorney-client relationship.
Mindy Duncan