At first glance, inheriting real estate might seem like an entirely good thing. In reality, when taxation and other estate planning issues are considered, this inheritance also presents several burdens. While New York does not have an inheritance tax, other states do and it is critical to consider this…
Children and Estate Plans: Equality Is Not Required If you do not have an estate, at least one person you know has probably recommended that you create one as soon as possible. Among the various questions that the creation of an estate plan presents is how exactly to divide…
One of the most difficult parts about successful estate planning is that countless myths persist about how to plan for your future. One of these misconceptions is that young people do not need estate plans. Another common misconception is that once you create an estate plan, there is no need…
The estate tax in the United States is a tax placed on a person’s assets that transferred to beneficiaries after that person’s death. While only a certain category of assets is impacted by these taxes, they can have a profound impact on the administration of your estate plan. As a…
Under the Uniform Parentage Act as well as New York law, children born through the aid of advanced reproductive technology are treated the same as biological children. Children who are born through the use of frozen biological material, however, create many estate planning questions, which include how to write…
While we create estate plans to make sure that our wishes are carried out after our death or incapacity, we ultimately establish these plans for our loved ones. There are various reasons, however, why many people hesitate to create any type of estate plan at all. For one, it can…
It’s a common tactic for families to utilize trusts to both own, control, and transfer ownership of family businesses. Among other reasons, these trusts help to achieve goals related to asset protection, tax savings, and estate planning. If your family-run business is also a government contractor, it is critical…
It’s easy to assume that celebrities have the best-written estate plans. In reality, however, each year countless celebrities pass away and create estate problems because they do not clearly express their wishes. For example, when the “queen of soul music” Aretha Franklin passed away, she left a holographic will…
In the recent case of Leland House v. Webb, a husband initiated legal action against his deceased wife’s executor to quiet title of a property parcel. In response, the executor claimed that the transfer of the property was a gift rather than a sale. After the trial court ruled in…
While most of us are familiar with wills, many people in New York are not certain about the role played by other estate planning tools like guardianships. In short, a guardian refers to a person who makes decisions for another individual, who is not able to make decisions on their…