The Consequences of Failing to Fund a Trust
It’s a common mistake for people to assume that after creating a trust, their work is done. If your assets are not properly titled to the name of the trust, a whole host of issues can arise when the time…
Protecting Your Future with a Power of Attorney and a Health Care Proxy
Who will take care of you and your finances and health care decision making if you become incapacitated? The power of attorney is a financial document that names who will step in and take care of an individual’s finances if…
The Importance of Having a Digital Will
If you take a moment and actually think about it, you are probably registered on several—if not dozens of—websites. You make accounts associated with various websites and sign in with your unique username and password. When I started thinking about…
Did Prince Have a Will?
Last week, the world was in shock when news broke about the sudden and unexpected death of pop icon, Prince. Prince died at his residence in Minnesota at the young age of 57.
As some mourned by flooding the internet with his greatest hits, others wondered about his estate. Prince had no known children, no current spouse, and no living parents. This leaves us all wondering: Who will receive his assets? Did he have proper estate planning in place?
Can I Disinherit My Spouse?
Under New York law, the answer as to whether you can disinherit your spouse is … not really. In New York, there is something called the spousal right of election, which states that a surviving spouse has the right to assert…
How Do I Disinherit Someone in My Will?
Oftentimes when creating an estate plan, it is requested that a family member or friend be disinherited. There are many reasons why one would chose to disinherit someone: Perhaps the person creating the estate plan has already provided the family…
Estate Planning: Addressing the Big Picture
Often times when clients make an appointment with our law firm, they have a very specific estate planning concern or issue. They may have a particular focus in mind, such as updating a will or avoiding probate. With a plethora of details to consider, it is often challenging for individuals to adequately address all aspects of their personal “big picture”, i.e. their complete estate.
Leaving Money in a Charitable Trust or Will (Part 2)
Why should you contact the charity that you are planning to name as beneficiary?
People often wish to leave money to charities. This blog contains real-world scenarios in which individuals leave assets to charities:
Example #1: Tom has no children and no living relatives. His net worth is about 10 million dollars. Realizing his estate would be taxable, he wanted to strategically make a bequest to his alma mater, the church that he attends, and a hospital that he credits with saving his life.
He contacted his alma mater to inform them of his intentions. He signed a letter of intent specifying the dollar amount of the gift he intended to leave. As a result, the college named an endowment after him, with the funds to be used to create a scholarship.
He spoke with the pastor at his church about his intentions, and he was able to hear about the good work that the church will be able to do as a result of his gift.
Leaving Money in a Charitable Trust or Will (Part 1)
People often wish to leave funds to charities as part of their estate planning.
You may leave money or assets to a non-profit organization by means of a charitable trust or will. People leave assets to all types of nonprofits like hospitals, animal shelters, religious organizations, etc.
Is Your Life Insurance Still Fulfilling Its Objective?
Henry Montag, CFP, CLTC, is a guest author for the Russo Law Group P.C. blog.
Do you want to establish a trust? There are many different reasons people do so:
- Some people do it for the management aspects to make sure their assets will be properly invested and not squandered away by a spendthrift child or spouse. Other people want to make sure that, if sued, their assets are protected from the claims of a creditor – and others do it for tax purposes.
- A parent or grandparent may establish a life insurance trust to provide an inheritance earmarked for the next generation, or to make certain that their child’s assets are protected in the event of a divorce.
- Trusts can also be set up to provide for the welfare of a child with or without special needs for a variety of reasons such as providing for their educational fund or giving birthday, graduation or wedding gift even after the grantor has passed away.
- A trust is also an excellent way to make a charitable bequest to assure your legacy and what is important to you will always be remembered.
While there are many factors for an individual or family to consider the benefits of establishing a trust, it is equally important that grantor’s/parents review the trusts they have chosen and make certain that the trustees are knowledgeable about their duties and are continuously still operating in the beneficiary’s best interest.