Estate Planning 30 - Personal Family Lawyer

7 Reasons to Consider a Trust for Your Family

November 27, 2013

Do you consider trusts to be instruments of the wealthy? While it is true that many Americans of means have trusts to protect and pass their wealth, there are a number of reasons why trusts can also be useful for middle-class families. Here are 7 of them: Control distribution of assets. You wouldn’t hand over…

November 15, 2013

Most of us who have a pet consider them to be a part of the family; unfortunately, the plans we may have so carefully put together to protect our loved ones do not take our pets into consideration. According to the ASPCA, only about 17% of dog and cat owners have taken the necessary legal…

October 25, 2013

We know that no one likes to think about death, especially their own. Which is why many people procrastinate when it comes to estate planning. Because it’s for when you die, right? Wrong! When done with a Personal Family Lawyer, creating an estate plan makes your life better. Here are some of the things that…

October 16, 2013

If you have been named the executor of someone’s estate or the Trustee of a Trust, you may be unaware of all the details this responsibility entails. Most parents name a child as an executor, but seldom do children then do the necessary research to see what estate administration is all about – and when…

October 9, 2013

For many people, the basics of estate planning are simple enough, but for those families with loved ones who are disabled or have special needs, the estate planning process is more involved – and definitely more critical. The latest statistics show that five percent of minor children have some sort of disability, and the burden…

October 2, 2013

We are fast approaching the holidays, when travel is the busiest and careful planning is necessary to nab the best airfare or book that New Year’s beach cottage before it slips away. One thing that is probably not on your travel to-do list is estate planning, but it should be so you can travel with…

September 26, 2013

If you came to this page to find out what I’ll charge you for a Will or you are considering calling me (or any other attorney) to ask, “How much do you charge for a will?” stop. It’s not the right question. The question you need an answer to first is “What do I really…

September 11, 2013

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Windsor invalidated the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The Windsor ruling has led to a number of recent federal rule changes from the IRS, Social Security Administration and other agencies that provide new estate planning opportunities for legally married same-sex couples. Earlier this…

The 10 Keys to Planning and Living Your Best Retirement

September 4, 2013

Three-day weekends like the Labor Day just passed give us all the tiniest snippet of a glimpse into what retirement might be like…i.e., extra time to do what we want. But to have a fulfilling and enriching retirement, you need to do more than just wait to stumble upon your retirement. You need to plan! …

August 28, 2013

Remember that old joke: How do you eat an elephant? Answer: One bite at a time. At the heart of that gag is the truth about how you tackle any seemingly complex task, taking it one step at a time so as not to overwhelm yourself. Many people neglect to create an estate plan because…

Include Your Intellectual Property in Your Estate Plan

You don’t have to be a famous producer or household name to own intellectual property. If you create music, own a business, write stories, or build gadgets in your garage, you almost certainly have intellectual property. However, because intellectual property…

Help Your Parents Avoid These New Financial Scams – Part 2

In part one of this series, we explored two popular scams that are targeting older adults this year: the grandparent scam, and cryptocurrency pickpocketing. In this week’s blog, I’m sharing two more scams that you and your parents need to…

Help Your Parents Avoid These New Financial Scams – Part 1

Fraudsters and scam artists are nothing new, but changing tools and technology are making it easier than ever for scammers to target their victims, especially seniors. To protect your aging parents (or yourself) from these con artists, it’s crucial to…