Are Payable-On-Death Accounts Right For You?

A payable-on-death account, also called a POD account, is a common way to keep bank and investment accounts out of probate, the court-supervised process that oversees distributing a deceased person’s property. Most people want to avoid their estate going through probate because their heirs will receive the inheritance faster, privately, and at lower cost. Continue reading

Debt After Death: Why You Should Think About It When Estate Planning

If you carry debt, do not assume that your death or incapacity will make it automatically disappear. To the contrary, the money you owe may eat away at the assets you were planning to leave to your heirs or — if you owe a large amount of money — may wipe out your estate completely. Debt comes in many different forms including credit cards, student loans, car payments, mortgages, and other financial obligations. Continue reading

4 Estate Planning Steps You Must Take After the Death of a Spouse

August 17, 2017

When a spouse passes away, thinking about “the estate” might be the last thing on your mind. And while it’s necessary to give yourself ample time to process the loss of your partner, it’s also imperative you talk with your estate planning attorney sooner rather than later — or you might be facing some pretty unpleasant consequences. Continue reading

The Perils of Joint Property

August 3, 2017

People often set up bank accounts or real estate so that they own it jointly with a spouse or other family member. The appeal of joint tenancy is that when one owner dies, the other will automatically inherit the property without it having to go through probate. Joint property is all perceived to be easy to setup since it can be done at the bank when opening an account or title company when buying real estate. Continue reading

Isn’t There Already A Law That Leaves Everything To My Spouse And Kids?

July 14, 2017

Many people think that if they die while they are married, everything they own automatically goes to their spouse or children. They’re actually thinking of state rules that apply if someone dies without leaving a will. In legal jargon, this is referred to as “intestate.” Continue reading

The Real Life Perils of Online and Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Estate Planning

With the number of online and do-it-yourself (DIY) legal providers continuing to grow and advertise heavily, you may be wondering if you could do your estate planning with the help of these forms. The advertising is seductive. Ads say, “attorneys use similar forms,” “the cost is significantly less than hiring an attorney,” and “many of these websites and kits are created by attorneys.” Continue reading

Yet Another State Joins in Passing Asset Protection Trust Law

Effective in early 2017, Michigan will be the 17th state to enact self-settled spendthrift trust legislation. This new law will allow for the creation of trusts in Michigan under which the settlor (trust-creator/ grantor/trustmaker) can name himself or herself, along with one or more other beneficiaries, as a discretionary beneficiary of the trust, and as such, be eligible to receive distributions from the trust. Continue reading

Knowing the Rules, and Knowing They Won’t Change, Can be Helpful

The sixteen states that have passed asset protection trust law often compete with one another for business, each trying to woo individuals to use a trust company in that state to protect assets. An often-touted advantage of using one state over the others is that the “superior” state has the shorter statute of limitations Continue reading

Transfers to Cook Islands Trust Not Voidable

In a previous blog, we discussed the “Bellinger” case and how the court concluded that the debtor’s actions were defensible. To briefly recap the facts, this was the matter in which Mr. Bellinger had made transfers of about $1.7 million to a Cook Islands trust after he knew the primary obligors (on a promissory note that he had personally guaranteed) were defaulting. Continue reading

Contempt of Court Issue Raised in Asset Protection Trust Case

A case in the Southern District of Florida involved an individual who had guaranteed to a bank the repayment of about $5 million in debt obligations. The guarantor learned that the primary obligors on the debt were defaulting on the loan. Afterwards, the guarantor created, and transferred about $1.7 million in various securities and cash assets to, a Cook Islands trust. Continue reading