Articles Tagged with New York estate plans

One of the essential functions of an effective estate plan is efficiently distributing your assets upon death. Using a beneficiary designation on assets that transfer on death can be a tool to efficiently transfer certain assets with ease if properly completed. Assets that can be transferred to a designated beneficiary upon death include insurance policies, bank accounts, retirement accounts, or other investment vehicles that feature a transfer or payable on death designation.

Types of Beneficiary Designations

Beneficiary designations include primary, contingent, and sometimes default beneficiaries. Upon the death of the owner, the asset will be transferred or disbursed to the primary beneficiary. If the primary designation fails, then the contingent beneficiary will receive the transferred asset. The default beneficiary will receive the transferred asset in the event there are no other primary or contingent beneficiaries designated to receive the asset. In some cases the default beneficiary may be a trust established by the owner of the asset, or the owner’s estate.

Without you around to clarify your testamentary intent, those receiving property, and likely those intentionally omitted from your will, might battle over your estate for years. There are many potential sources of dispute, but there are steps you can take to make sure your intent is carried out without an ongoing legal battle after you pass on.

Common Sources of Dispute

  • One child may have received more financial help over the years while the decedent was alive, and the will or trust does not take into account this prior assistance, which may leave the other children or beneficiaries with a sense of unfairness.
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