Estate Planning For The Here and Now

Estate planning clients tend to focus on the “when I die” issues when tending to their estate planning. However, if all you have done is sign a will and trust to order your affairs and distribute your property after you die, your estate plan is seriously deficient. Death is a certainty, but incapacity at some […]

A Savior Is Born Unto You

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not: for, behold, I […]

Location, Location, Location (Part 2)

A little while back we looked at the 10 worst states for retirement living.  Now we’ll examine the 10 best states for retirement living.  The ranking, courtesy of Bankrate, considered several factors, including local weather, access to health care, cost of living, crime rate and tax burden. This year’s ranking also adds a broad standard-of-living […]

Joan Rivers’s Will Offers a Lesson on the Benefits of a Trust in Estate Planning

ABC News reveals some of the details of Joan Rivers’s will this week.  The will was filed with the courts on December 5.  The most significant detail being that she employed a trust as part of her estate plan and, therefore, none of the details of her estate – her assets, their value, or who […]

Beware the Trust Mills and Their Peddlers

A very good Times Herald article sheds light on the problematic practice of non-attorneys pushing estate planning documents on unsuspecting consumers.  Not surprising, this advice is given for the non-attorney’s own financial gain.  There’s big money in peddling “estate plans” on an unsuspecting public. In Michigan, our State Bar has received numerous complains regarding estate […]