Are you failing your family the way these 4 celebrities failed theirs? These four celebrity estate planning fiascos offer lessons about how to handle your own planning and legacies. 1. Pablo Picasso – The great Dada artist died in 1973…

There’s an entire category of commonly-overlooked legacy to consider – digital assets. Don’t worry if you didn’t consider these assets when made your will or trust – it’s surprisingly common and, luckily, easy to correct. What are digital assets? They…

In 2015 when the Court decided the landmark case, Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees same-sex couples the right to marry and these marriages must be recognized nationwide. In addition to…

In 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Clark v. Rameker altered the landscape of estate planning strategies concerning protecting inherited IRAs from creditor claims. In Clark, the court considered whether a person who had inherited an IRA from her…

There are many varieties of trust available for use in estate planning. A majority of these trusts are established while the grantor is still alive. A testamentary trust differs from other trust structures in that it is created in a…

Federal Medicaid regulations require a state to seek reimbursement from an individual’s estate for the cost of long-term nursing facility services. Medicaid liens, as they are commonly referred to, are a lien placed against a person’s real or personal property…

Market volatility is a constant in our modern world. But so-called Black Swan events sometimes take the concept of volatility to the next level. On June 23, voters in the U.K. passed a referendum supporting the idea that Britain should…

Every different form of trust contains its unique benefits and drawbacks that depend on an individual’s estate planning needs. One particular example involves the choice between irrevocable and revocable trusts. As the name implies, an irrevocable trust cannot be altered…

On June 19, 2016, when successful actor Anton Yelchin (Chekov in the recent Star Trek movies) failed to show for rehearsal, his friends became worried and drove to his house. Sadly, they found Yelchin pinned between his security fence, brick…

Estate plans are almost magical: they allow you to maintain control of your assets, yet protect you should you become incapacitated. They take care of your family and pets. And, if carefully crafted, they reduce fees, taxes, stress, and time…