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Newsletters
Transmuted Property is Transmuted Property
In a recent California Court of Appeal case, Marriage of Holtemann, the court held that a husband’s transmutation of his separate property to community property in connection with his estate planning was binding on him at the time of divorce.
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Estate Taxes And The Upcoming Election
As I write this we are in the midst of the political conventions and focused on the two major party candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama. These candidates have expressed their views on estate taxes, but remember, it is the Congress that is driving the estate tax bus.
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Absence Of Advance Health Care Directive Can Cause Anguish For Your Family
You may recall the case of Terry Schiavo, the comatose Florida woman whose husband and parents could not agree whether Terry should be disconnected from life support. The case gained national attention a few years ago when the courts and even the United States Congress got involved in the dispute. A similar case is now making its way through the court system in the Fresno area.
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Estate Planning For NonCitizen Spouses
Noncitizens who reside in the U.S. (sometimes referred to as “resident aliens”) have some—but not all—of the gift and estate tax exemptions available to U.S. citizens. The exclusion amounts available to U.S. citizens are the same for noncitizens making transfers, For example, noncitizens who live in the U.S. do have the full applicable credit amount against U.S. estate tax and generation-skipping transfer (“GST”) tax, which is currently $2 million per person.
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Estate And Gift Tax Reform Proposals Explored In Congress
As you are probably aware, the federal estate and gift tax rules are in a state of flux. Under the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA), several changes in the estate and gift tax laws have occurred and more will continue to occur over the course of ten years, from 2001 to 2011.
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Planning For A Special Needs Child
We have all been hearing about the alarming increase in the rate of autism diagnosis in our country. Beneficiaries who are autistic or suffer from other developmental or medical conditions that render them unable to support themselves or to live without assistance from a parent or care provider require special attention in the estate planning process.
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Be Vigilant In Protecting Loved Ones From Elder Financial Abuse
The financial abuse of elders in California and throughout the country is a growing problem. These wrongful acts, which are actionable both civilly and criminally in our state, are very often committed by family members or care providers.
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Pet Trust Bill Passed
The California Senate recently approved legislation aimed at protecting animals after the deaths of their owners. Senate Bill 685 was unanimously approved and will now move to the State Assembly for consideration.
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New Year Estate Planning Checkup
New Year’s is a time when many of us resolve to do things we know we should do but for various reasons haven’t done (yet). Estate planning tends to fall into this category for many of us, but you can change that! And even for those who have done some estate planning, you can resolve to give your estate plan a check-up to make sure it still meets your needs.
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Business Succession Planning
What will happen to your business if you become disabled or die? Your goal is a smooth transfer that enhances the likelihood your business can continue on in the next generation and provide security for your survivors. As a business owner, you need to decide who you want to own and operate your business and implement a succession plan that accomplishes your goals.
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Five Pitfalls You Can Avoid By Planning
Recently a listserv colleague solicited ideas for a presentation that he was giving on the most common estate planning mistakes. By far the most frequently mentioned was the failure to make an estate plan. The essential components of a complete estate plan are a durable power of attorney, an advance health care directive, a will and in most cases a trust. In this article I will discuss some undesirable consequences that can be avoided by making a good estate plan.
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What To Do When Someone Dies
When a family member dies leaving assets, I recommend that you consult with a probate attorney, preferably me, of course, to determine what legal steps must be taken to pay all obligations of the decedent and his estate, to transfer the decedent’s assets and to pay taxes, if any. There are many “nonlawyer” tasks that must be taken care of soon after the death, as well. In this article I will be discussing those.
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Four Points You Need to Discuss With Your Advance Health Care Agent
Last month I wrote briefly about three tools that are part of every complete estate plan and are designed, at least in part, to plan for incapacity. This month I will be focusing more closely on one of these, the Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD).
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How Do I Plan for Incapacity?
If you have compared the relative costs of life insurance and disability insurance lately chances are you have figured out that, unless you are quite old or sick, in any given year you are much more likely to become disabled than to die. Now, of course not every disability rises to the level of incapacity. However, your estate plan should not only plan what will happen to your assets when you die. It should also plan for what will happen to your assets and you if you become incapacitated.
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Gift Tax and the Annual Exclusion Amount
It’s great to be able to do something nice for a family member, but you must be careful not to trigger the gift tax, either by giving too much or by “giving” something you didn’t know the IRS considered a gift.
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How Do I Select a Guardian For My Children?
If you die without a will, your property will go to your heirs according to the default estate plan in the California Probate Code. There is no similar default plan for your children.
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