By Michael Ettinger, Esq.
One of the situations that call for the lawyer to recommend himself as trustee is in second marriage planning.
It is a firmly established legal principal that there is no ethical prohibition against the attorney recommending himself to act as a trustee on behalf of a client or client’s estate. And for good reason. In many situations the counselor can provide invaluable assistance that no one else is able or willing to provide.
By Michael Ettinger, Esq.
So many clients are advised that they need a will. In fact, will planning is becoming obsolete for persons over sixty for many reasons.
Instead of actually solving problems, wills often create them. First, they must be proven to be valid in a court proceeding, the infamous probate, for estates in New York over $30,000.00. Court proceedings can be expensive, time-consuming and things often go wrong. Also, when the client dies, that will is usually out-of-date, having been created decades before. The executors may be the wrong persons, the beneficiaries or their percentages may be wrong or other changes in the family have not been taken into account.
By Michael Ettinger, Esq.
In our experience, a majority of New Yorkers are unaware (blissfully?) that New York State levies an estate tax.
New York’s estate tax starts on estates over one million dollars. What is your estate for tax purposes? All of your real and personal property, your bank accounts, investments, IRA’s, etc. as well as any life insurance that you own. Add it all up and, if you’re under a million, then no problem.
By Michael Ettinger, Attorney at Law
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Historically, estate planning consisted of setting up a will and leaving everything to one’s children in equal shares, “per stirpes”. The “per stirpes” is latin for “by the roots”, meaning that if any of the children predecease their parents then their share goes to their children, if any.
by Michael Ettinger, Esq.
With people living much longer than in the past, the frequency of remarriage is increasing, even in later years. This latter phenomenon is raising a host of elder law estate planning issues. On the other hand, we are also seeing with increasing frequency the blended family with “his, hers and theirs” children, creating another set of potential pitfalls.
Most of these estate planning issues can be resolved with thoughtfulness on the part of the clients and the compassionate guidance of their estate planning attorney.
New York Estate Planning Lawyer Blog