Corporate Trustee Removal Decision from Pennsylvania Supreme Court Clarifies Issue
Can the beneficiaries of a trust remove a corporate trustee? This was the issue in a recent decision from a Pennsylvania Supreme Court case. In “Trust Under Agreement Of Edward Winslow Taylor Appeal Of: Wells Fargo Bank,” the beneficiaries of an irrevocable trust were told they did not have permission to remove a trustee through…
Read MoreThe Newest Estate Planning Asset: Your Digital Life
Now that every generation is well-represented in the online world, we all need to consider what will happen to our social media, financial and creative online assets, when we pass away. Treat your digital assets as you do any other assets during estate planning, and your heirs will thank you for it. That includes creating…
Read MoreNew Jersey Enacts Law That Increases Abuse Reporting Requirements, Shrinks Fines for Failing to Report
With the maximum penalty for failing to report abuse reduced from $5,000 to $500, some claim that Peggy’s Law simply aligns state law with federal regulations. An article from McKnight’s Senior Living, “NJ law increases requirements, decreases some fines in reporting of suspected abuse cases,” that provides the history behind “Peggy’s Law,” which took seven…
Read MoreMinnesota Legislature Asked to Review Elder Abuse Secrecy Law, Says Minnesota Governor
It’s one thing to protect whistleblowers, but preventing families from getting all of the details, if loved ones have been abused or neglected, just doesn’t sit right with governor. A recent report from KARE 11 TV, “Governor wants review of elder abuse secrecy issue,” explains that the Governor of Minnesota has asked the state’s legislature…
Read MoreYes, Even You Need to Have a Will
Most of us are hard-wired to avoid situations that might lead to our death. While some thrive on sky diving or swimming with sharks, death is something most of us prefer to avoid. Unfortunately, trying to ignore our own mortality can wreak havoc for our loved ones. That is, if we don’t take the time…
Read MoreEstate and Farm Succession Planning: Costly and Common Mistakes
Planning for the next generation to continue the legacy of a family farm, or any family-owned business, requires estate planning that begins decades in advance. Without properly prepared estate and succession plans in place, many farm families find themselves in a bind from a financial and legal standpoint. In many cases, the family farm must…
Read MoreWhy an Estate “Directory” Can Help Your Family
Once your estate plan is done, or reviewed, if several years have elapsed since it was created, the next document you should create is an Estate Directory. Families are vulnerable when a loved one dies. It can be difficult to make decisions, old family tensions may resurface and sibling rivalries erupt into no-holds-barred battles. The…
Read MoreIs a Trust Right for Your Estate Plan, and What Kind of Trust is Best?
Wealthy people are not the only ones who use trusts in their estate planning. They also serve many different purposes for “regular” people. Here’s something that most people don’t know: if you listed your spouse or a child as a beneficiary on a bank account, from a technical standpoint, you have created a simple trust.…
Read MoreHere’s What You Need to Know about Roth IRAs
Self-proclaimed experts can make your head spin with their bragging about how great their investments and retirement accounts are. There’s one in every crowd! You may encounter them at work or at family gatherings. These are people who insist on telling you how smart they are about avoiding taxes through retirement accounts. But before you…
Read MoreActor’s Mistake in Estate Plan Is Costly
Philip Seymour Hoffman’s mistakes cost at least $12 million in estate taxes. Some estate planning mistakes made by the late actor Philip Seymour Hoffman turned out to be costly. His estate planning mistakes were not marrying the mother of his three children and not working with an estate planning attorney, according to a Kiplinger in…
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