Classic female crooner Etta James left the world an indelible collection of timeless musical standards. Beyond her music, estate planning attorneys have explained that since her passing earlier this year, Ms. James has also left the world a wealth of estate planning lessons regarding both the good and bad ways…
Last week the United States Supreme Court heard arguments in a case that our New York estate planning attorneys know may effect on how some families in unique situations craft estate and inheritance plans to provide for their children in the future. The case, Astrue v. Capato, revolves around one…
The world is a different place today than it was in 1950. Several decades ago the vast majority of families were of similar make-up: father, mother, kids, dog, house, and car. Inheritance planning in those situations often followed very predictable patterns. A spouse received the assets after a death, and…
There is a tendency to view estate planning as a static skill and the process of having an estate plan created as a one-time task. Both are misconceptions. While certain basic estate planning principles have held true over the years, new strategies are developed, arguments are made, and legislation is…
This weekend the Times Herald-Record published an article written by our New York elder law estate planning attorney, Bonnie Kraham, discussing a basic estate planning concept–the proper funding of trusts. There is often a misunderstanding among some residents about the effect of signing the trust documents. Signing the trust documents…
The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is a federal law passed in 1996 that defines marriage for federal purposes as only between one man and one woman. As our New York estate planning lawyers have often discussed, this means that same-sex couples married in our state are still not considered…
One important part of the elder law estate planning process involves working out inheritance details. This comes with unique concerns for each family as various assets have different meanings for each individual, far beyond their market-value. Accounting for these emotional attachments is a delicate process that should not be done…
The Chicago Tribune published a story this weekend on new survey results which indicate, yet again, that many residents are taking big risks with a lack of even basic estate planning. A new Harris Interactive phone survey has found that more than half of adults still do not have a…
A small minority of misguided observers might suggest that using estate planning tools like revocable living trusts are becoming less necessary in recent years because of increases in the federal estate tax exclusionary amount. According to this line of thinking, use of the trust was limited solely to avoiding estate…
Special needs trusts are helpful legal tools that allow parents and grandparents to leave behind assets to loved ones with special needs without damaging the beneficiary’s ability to receive SSI and Medicaid benefits. Our New York estate planning attorneys know that in the past the best strategy for these families…