Proper estate planning involves respecting client wishes about distribution of assets while creating legal documents to avoid probate, save estate taxes, and plan for disability. Many plans include similar components, but there is flexibility so that each client’s unique goals and preferences are accommodated. For example, many area community members…
An experienced New York estate planning attorney has likely come to appreciate how asset preparation issues are particularly important for women. Demographics play a role in this reality. Women tend to outlive men, and a wife is more likely than a husband to be left alone after a disability or…
Most New York estate plans have various components and include several legal documents. Most will have a Revocable Living Trust, Medicaid Asset Protection Trust, or both. A pour-over will is also frequently added as a failsafe to cancel an old will and ensure that any assets left outside the trust…
Local residents visit our New York estate planning attorneys for professional assistance to protect and pass on their assets. Many also expect guidance identifying the items that should be considered an asset and included in the planning. Most area families need to consider things beyond homes, cars, investment portfolios, and…
Over the past few weeks political debate around the national debt has dominated headlines. National leaders had disagreed for months on whether the debt ceiling needed to be raised. In addition, lawmakers had argued over whether spending cuts and revenue enhancements should be addressed as part of the debt crisis.…
Some area residents may think that New York estate planning is only for married seniors who have big families and substantial wealth. Fortunately, more and more people are coming to understand that this planning is a necessity for all community members, no matter what their situation in life. The Calgary…
Inheritance feuds are quite common when a family member dies without an estate plan. Those who die young are the most likely to have failed to leave any legal documents that express their wishes. Unfortunately, the perception still exists that estate planning is something with which only seniors need be…
The Wall Street Journal wrote this weekend on a unique estate planning issue that is becoming relevant to a growing number of families: the inheritance rights of children conceived after one’s death through in vitro fertilization. More people than ever before are cryopreserving their gametes which can then be unfrozen…
One of the more novel aspects of modern New York estate planning includes determining what to do with one’s digital life after death. Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, email archives, and other online resources continue to expand. Individuals of every age are using the services to store past communications, share…
Our New York elder law estate planning lawyers know that proper estate planning can help clients save money on taxes and probate costs, ultimately allowing them to pass on more of their assets at death. Besides leaving a larger estate, preparation also ensures that the distribution is likely to occur…