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Estate Planning

Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog

A resource to enhance the teaching of courses that address intestate succession, wills, trusts, estate administration, non-probate assets, planning for disability, and other matters pertaining to estate planning.
By Gerry W. Beyer

Post Frequency: 44.9/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 14:00:00

GRAT Bill Passes House

Posted on March 31, 2010
On March 24, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4849, a bill that would change the laws relating to Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs). I previously blogged about this bill here and here. The following, taken from Deborah L....

Creative Gifts For Family and Friends in Need May Avoid Gift Tax Liability

Posted on March 31, 2010
In tough economic times, wealthy clients may wish to provide financial help to less-fortunate family and friends. Unlike the the federal estate tax, however, the federal gift tax has not been temporarily repealed. According to Deborah L. Jones, Five Tax-Free...

Author Gabor Hamza Examines the Development of Private Law in Over 60 Countries

Posted on March 30, 2010
Gabor Hamza (chair of the Department of Civil Law, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest) recently published his book entitled Entstehung und Entwicklung der modernen Privatrechtsordnungen und die römischrechtliche Tradition, which translated into English is The Origin and Development of Modern Private...

Members of Ethical Panels at Hospitals Discuss End-of-Life Decisions

Posted on March 30, 2010
A USA Today article offers the following insight from members of hospital ethics panels. These quotes confirm the value of disability planning when it comes to end-of-life decisions for indefinitely unconscious patients: One Clinical Ethicists asks family members "[w]hat would...

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Wisconsin's Online Organ Donation Registry

Posted on March 30, 2010
Residents of Wisconsin may now register to be an organ donor online. The website allows a prospective donor to join the state's donor registry by entering their name and driver's license number. The website also provides an option to remove...

Exchange Your Dollars for Coins

Posted on March 30, 2010
Are you a trustee or the representative of a wealthy client looking for a good investment in a less-than-ideal economy? Perhaps you should exchange your dollars for coins. During the final months of 2009, a rare reeded-edge penney from 1795...

Happy Passover!

Posted on March 29, 2010
To all my readers of the Jewish faith, a very Happy Passover.

Vasarely Estate: Heirs Quibbling and Foundation Missing Hundreds of Pieces

Posted on March 29, 2010
The French artist Victor Vasarely died in 1996, leaving behind what would be a messy estate: Vasarely's heirs sued the director of the Vasarely Fxoundation and in 2005, a French court found the director guilty of misappropriating estate art work....

Arkansas Court Allows Disinterment After Administrator Fails to Advise Family of Burial Wishes

Posted on March 29, 2010
Long v. Alford, --- S.W.3d ----, 2010 Ark. App. 233, 2010 WL 811289 (Ark.App.): Decdent and Patsy Long were married for seven years, divorced in 1977, and then lived together for over 30 years until decedent died. Decedent's will executed...

RPTE to Host 21st Annual Spring Symposia

Posted on March 29, 2010
The ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law is sponsoring the 21st Annual Spring Symposia in Philadelphia on May 6 - 7, 2010. A summary of the program is below: Whether you are specializing in estate planning or...

Alzheimer's Planning With A Mental Health Advance Directive

Posted on March 29, 2010
Lisa Brodoff (Director, Ronald A. Peterson Law Clinic and Clinical Professor, Seattle University School of Law) has published her article entitled Planning for Alzheimer's Disease With Mental Health Advance Directives, 17 Elder L.J. 239 (2010). A summary of the article...

Class Action Suit Claims Men Target Elderly With Bogus Estate Planning Services

Posted on March 28, 2010
A class action law suit has been filed against two California men who allegedly took advantage of senior citizens by offering uncessary or unqualified advice regarding estate planning issues: The men held scare-tactic seminars in which they promised senior citizens...

Top SSRN Downloads

Posted on March 28, 2010
Here are the top downloads from January 27, 2010 to March 28, 2010 from the SSRN Journal of Wills, Trusts, & Estates Law for all papers announced in the last 60 days. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 478 Ten Estate...

Expanding the Definition of Child in Intestacy Laws for Caregiver Grandparents

Posted on March 27, 2010
Neta Sozonov has published her note entitled Expanding the Statutory Definition of "Child" in Intestacy Law: A Just Solution for the Inheritance Difficulties Grandparent Caregivers' Grandchildren Currently Face, 17 Elder L.J. 401 (2010). A summary of the article is below:...

Most Estate Planning Tasks Are Priority Tasks

Posted on March 27, 2010
Perhaps the daunting job of assembling an estate plan is simpler for the client if individual tasks are divided into categories such as "must do now" and "do someday later." At least this is what a recent NY Times article...

Finding A Missing Beneficiary on the Internet

Posted on March 26, 2010
Estate planing practitioners may be required to locate long-lost beneficiaries. The internet makes this task easier. The following tips should help in this search: To search the person's full name, enter the name in search engines enclosed in quotes, such...

Steps For Practitioners Fearing Lawsuits Resulting From the Estate Tax Repeal

Posted on March 26, 2010
The unexpected estate tax rules in effect for 2010 could result in unintended consequences for some wills, and when unintended consequences occur, lawsuits may occur as well. Unhappy beneficiaries of these wills may sue the attorney who drafted the will...

The 101 Biggest Estate Planning Mistakes

Posted on March 26, 2010
Herbert E. Nass has published his book entitled The 101 Biggest Estate Planning Mistakes (2010). Nass is a New York attorney who has helped countless celebrities with estate planning. The book reproduces real-life examples from the wills and trusts of...

Article Argues that Undue Influence Doctrine Should be Abolished

Posted on March 25, 2010
Carla Spivack (associate professor of law, Oklahoma City University) has published her article entitled Why the Testamentary Doctrine of Undue Influence Should be Abolished, 58 U. Kan. L. Rev. 245 (2010). An excerpt from the article is below: Part II...

Trust Beneficiaries Sue Trustee For Investing With Madoff

Posted on March 25, 2010
Two trust beneficiaries are suing the trustee for investing with Bernard Madoff: When Howard Squadron, a prominent Manhattan lawyer died, he left two life insurance policies to fund a trust for his wife and five kids. The trustee, Squadron's wife,...

Possible Effect of Proposed Changes to GRAT Laws

Posted on March 25, 2010
Yesterday I posted a blog about H.R. 4849, a bill introduced in the house last week that would make significant changes to grantor retained annuity trusts. GRATs allow wealthy families to pass wealth while lowering estate and gift tax liabilities....

Next up for Auction: The Syringe That Delivered Jackson's Lethal Dose?

Posted on March 25, 2010
The syringe used to administer Michael Jackson's fatal dose of medications was allegedly stolen and may be put up for auction in Las Vegas on the one-year anniversary of Jackson's death. The seller is talking with attorneys about the legality...

English High Court Could Address Validity of Prenuptial Agreements

Posted on March 24, 2010
A man in Britain is appealing a lower court decision regarding his prenuptial agreement to the country's highest court. Nicolas Granatino signed an agreement renouncing claims to the fortune of his wealthy wife. While the High Court found the agreement...

Newly Introduced House Bill Would Change GRAT Rules

Posted on March 24, 2010
Last week Rep. Sander Levin, D - Michigan, introduced H.R. 4849, which would make the following changes to Granter Retained Annuities: Adding a required ten-year minimum term on the right to receive fixed payments. Requiring that payments can not decrease...

Estate Planning Developments in Georgia

Posted on March 24, 2010
Mary F. Radford (professor of law, Georgia State University) has published her article Wills, Trusts, Guardianships, and Fiduciary Administration, 61 Mercer L. Rev. 385 (2010). The article "describes selected cases and significant legislation from the period of June 1, 2008...

Removing Funds from a Traditional IRA, Giving to Charity, and Leaving More to Your Kids

Posted on March 24, 2010
When converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, you have to pay income tax on the assets being converted. Making smaller conversions over a number of years along with charitable contributions during those years could help offset much of...

Top SSRN Downloads

Posted on March 23, 2010
Here are the top downloads from January 20, 2010 to March 21, 2010 from the SSRN Journal of Wills, Trusts, & Estates Law for all papers announced in the last 60 days. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 410 Ten Estate...

Estate of Anna Nicole Smith Looses Another Court Battle

Posted on March 23, 2010
Last Friday a Federal Court of Appeals ruled that Anna Nicole Smith's estate is not entitled to $300 million from the estate of her deceased husband J. Howard Marshall. A brief recap of the the Anna Nicole Smith saga is...

South Dakota Enacts Tax Fix Statute for Problems Caused by Estate Tax Repeal

Posted on March 23, 2010
On March 11, 2010, South Dakota enacted a tax fix law providing that the estate tax laws applicable on December 31, 2009, will apply to wills and trusts that refer to federal estate and generation-skipping transfer tax laws. The law...

Building Blocks of Wills, Estates and Probate Course Available Online and On DVD

Posted on March 23, 2010
The Texas Bar CLE and the ABA Real Estate, Probate & Trust Law Section of the State Bar of Texas recently co-sponsored a studio-produced webcast of the 11th annual CLE entitled Building Blocks of Wills, Estates and Probate Course. Now,...

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