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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

Fall 2009 Newsletter -- AALS Section on Trusts and Estates

Posted on December 17, 2009
The Fall 2009 Newsletter from the AALS Section on Trusts and Estates is now available. Here are the key features of this newsletter: Message from the Section Chair 2010 AALS Annual Meeting (Section program information) News of the Membership Spotlight...

Time limit on will contest does not apply to tort claim where will contest not available

Posted on December 16, 2009
In In re Estate of Ellis, No. 106461, 2009 WL 3471069 (Ill. Oct. 29, 2009), the Supreme Court of Illinois held that the six-month statute of limitations on filing a will contest does not apply to an action for tortious...

The UPC Authorizes Notarized Wills

Posted on December 16, 2009
Lawrence W. Waggoner (Lewis M. Simes Professor of Law) has recently posted on SSRN his article entitled The UPC Authorizes Notarized Wills, 34 ACTEC 83 (Fall 2008). Here is the abstract of his article: Anglo-American law has for centuries required...

German study on intergenerational transfers

Posted on December 15, 2009
Thomas Leopold and Thorsten Schneider have recently posted on SSRN their article entitled Intergenerational Transfers from a Life Course Perspective; A Longitudinal Comparison of Gifts and Bequests. Here is the abstract of their article: The research on private financial transfers...

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California case holds that response to petition for instructions violates no-contest clause

Posted on December 15, 2009
In Cook v. Cook, 99 Cal. Rptr. 3d 913 (Cal. Ct. App. 2009), the California intermediate appellate court held that a beneficiary?s pleading violated the no-contest clause in his parents? trust when the pleading (which asserted that debts the beneficiary...

Should freezing be delayed for autopsy?

Posted on December 15, 2009
In what may be the first case of its kind, a decedent's wishes to be frozen are in conflict with the government's right to perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death. Here are some details from Colleen Jenkins,...

Enforceability of in terrrorem clause in trust -- Virginia style

Posted on December 14, 2009
The Supreme Court of Virginia held that a no-contest provision in a revocable trust ?that constitutes part of a decedent?s testamentary estate plan? is subject to the same principles applied to such clauses in wills, in particular the principle that....

Never too old to kill?

Posted on December 14, 2009
At 100 years old, Elizabeth Barrow (shown at left) thought she was living a good life and had more time to come. Unfortunately, her 98 year old roommate, Laura Lundquist, had other ideas. According to Jason Kessler, Woman, 98, indicted...

Angle gives old tax article new life

Posted on December 14, 2009
Elliott Manning (University of Miami - School of Law) and Jerome M. Hesch (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) have recently posted on SSRN their article entitled Family Deferred Payment Sales: Installment Sales, SCINs, Private Annuity Sales, OID and Other Enigmas...

Top SSRN Downloads

Posted on December 13, 2009
Here are the top downloads from October 14, 2009 to December 13, 2009 from the SSRN Journal of Wills, Trusts, & Estates Law for all papers announced in the last 60 days. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 390 2009 Federal...

Treating Class Gift Beneficiaries Equally, Dead or Alive

Posted on December 13, 2009
Frederic S. Schwartz (professor of law, Oklahoma City University) has published his article entitled Misconception of the Will as Linguistic Behavior and Misperception of the Testator's Intention: The Class Gift Doctrine, 86 U. Det. Mercy L. Rev. 443 (2009)...

Petition to compel arbitration on question of the competency of the trustee/beneficiary does not violate no-contest clause

Posted on December 12, 2009
The Supreme Court of California reversed the intermediate appellate court by holding that a petition to compel arbitration in accordance with the terms of the trust on the question of a trustee/beneficiary?s competency to take various actions authorized by the...

A Michael Jackson Theme Park?

Posted on December 12, 2009
Robert L. Moshman, Esq.,, (attorney & writer) has written a new article entitled The Estate Analyst: Celebrity Estate Theme Parks. Here is the introduction to the the article: How successful will Michael Jackson's estate be in maintaining future revenues? Will...

Disclaimer may be revoked if procured by undue influence

Posted on December 11, 2009
The testator?s mother and sole beneficiary under his will sought to revoke her disclaimer of all her interest in her son?s estate. The disclaimed property passed to the disclaimant?s nephew who was the contingent beneficiary of the will and the...

Will popular tax breaks survive for 2010?

Posted on December 11, 2009
The following excerpts are from Stephen Ohlemacher, House votes to extend $31B in expiring tax breaks, Yahoo! Finance, Dec. 9, 2009: The House voted [December 9, 2009] to extend $31 billion in popular tax breaks, including an income tax deduction...

Happy Hanukkah

Posted on December 11, 2009
Greetings, To all my readers of the Jewish faith, please accept my best wishes for Hanukkah. Gerry

Disbarred Lawyer, Ponzi Scheme, and Fictitious Clients

Posted on December 11, 2009
David Rothstein, a disbarred south Florida lawyer, was arrested on Dec. 1 for involvement in an alleged $1 billion ponzi scheme. Rothstein allegedly convinced investors to make high-interest loans to fictitious clients and buy discount settlement agreements with the promise...

The Disparate Impact of ERISA on Spousal Wealth

Posted on December 11, 2009
Paula A. Monopoli (professor of law, University of Maryland) has published her article entitled Marriage, Property and [In]Equality: Remedying ERISA?s Disparate Impact on Spousal Wealth, 119 Yale L.J. 61 (2009). An excerpt from the article is below: ERISA provides that...

How will H.R. 4154 fare in the Senate?

Posted on December 10, 2009
Earlier on this blog, I reported that on December 3, 2009, the House of Representatives voted today 225 to 200 to retain the 2009 estate tax exemption ($3.5 million) and rates (top rate of 45%) for deaths in 2010 and...

Elder Law Audio Conference

Posted on December 10, 2009
The National Constitution Center is sponsoring an audio CLE conference on January 14, 2010 entitled Elder Law Planning Update: Keys to Securing Benefits for Your Client. Here is a description of the program: Faced with the added pressures of an...

Whether Taxing a Child's Passive Income at the Parent's Tax Rate Prevents Income-Shifting

Posted on December 10, 2009
Samuel D. Brunson (assistant professor of law, Loyola University Chicago) has posted on SSRN his article entitled Tax-Motivated Income-Shifting and the Kiddie Tax. Here is the abstract of the article: In 1986, concerned that wealthy parents were sheltering some of...

Tennessee: Determining 'Bodily Heirs' included in a Contingent Remainder

Posted on December 10, 2009
Chambers v. Devore, et al., Tenn. No. W2008-02548-COA-R3-CV (Nov. 9, 2009, App. Ct.): Where contingent remainder of life estate goes to bodily heirs of life tenant and life tenant's child predeceases the life tenant, the direct and lineal issue of...

Estate Planning Mistakes Revealed

Posted on December 09, 2009
Herbert E. Nass (attorney, New York, NY) has recently published his book entitled 101 Biggest Estate Planning Mistakes. Here is a description of this book: A trust and estate lawyer to the stars offers an engaging look at how to...

Guide to Education Planning

Posted on December 09, 2009
Nancy Shurtz (professor of law, University of Oregon) has published her book entitled Education Planning: Taxes, Trusts, and Techniques (2009). The following is a description of the book: To help you advise clients who are scrambling to figure out how...

Common Myths About Suicide

Posted on December 09, 2009
When suicide is discussed on this blog, the discussion usually concerns the controversy surrounding assisted suicide. Information about unassisted suicide, however, could also be useful in an field largely focused on death. The following are ten myths about suicide, which...

More on the Future of the Estate Tax

Posted on December 09, 2009
Robert Moshman (attorney & writer) has written a new article entitled The Estate Analyst: Can The Estate Tax Cheat Death? The End Is Near (No, It is Not). Here is a summary of the article: Watching the estate tax sign...

ACTEC Announces Mary Moers Wenig 2010 Student Writing Competition

Posted on December 08, 2009
The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel has officially announced the Mary Moers Wenig 2010 Student Writing Competition. Here are some of the key features of this competition: Large cash prizes (first place = $5,000; second place = $3,000;...

Cancerous Kidneys -- Better than nothing?

Posted on December 08, 2009
Let's say you need a kidney transplant. None are available except one riddled with cancer. What should you do? It now seems that a wise choice may be to take the cancerous kidney and use it until a better one...

The tax treatment of self-canceling installment notes (SCINs)

Posted on December 08, 2009
Gadi Zohar (J.D. Candidate, May 2010, Santa Clara University School of Law) has recently posted on SSRN his article entitled Got Premium? Costanza v. C.I.R. and the Tax Treatment of Intrafamily SCINs Canceled by Death. Here is the abstract of...

Nonjudicial Dispute Resolution For Trust & Estate Matters

Posted on December 08, 2009
Gail E. Mautner (shareholder, Lane Powell) & Heidi L. G. Orr (shareholder, Lane Powell) have published their article entitled A Brave New World: Nonjudicial Dispute Resolution Procedures Under the Uniform Trust Code and Washington's and Idaho's Trust and Estate Dispute...

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