Taxation & Estate Planning

Is There More Conflict Inherent In People’s Estate’s Than Back In “The Good Old Days”?

By Michael D. Bonasera, Esq.

The premise of this post is that, because of the decline in “traditional family values” (e.g. the “loosening”of the traditional nuclear family due to “[t]hings that used to be taboo - divorce, children born out of wedlock” etc.) and “society as a whole [having] developed a more money-centric mentality”, there is more, or at least a higher likelihood of, conflict surrounding today’s estate planning…

While I’m not sure what money-centric means, nor am I sure that the decline in “traditional family values” is necessarily always a bad thing, an awareness of conflict (or potential conflict) in one’s family is not something to just ignore. There may not be ways to avoid or prevent conflict, but there are many ways to preemptively deal with it with a well-drafted estate plan.

Don’t just assume that you and your sister are simply going to reconcile your 58 year fued while standing over mom’s death-bed… Plan ahead! Talk to your family - the ones you can talk to - and do something about it. Call an estate planning attorney.

Full post as published by The Ohio Trust & Estate Blog on March 21, 2008 (boomark / email).