I see a lot of poor writing when reviewing estate plans for clients. Most of the worst writing I see occurs when people attempt to write their Wills using forms found on the internet, including LegalZoom and Rocket Lawyer. I addressed do-it-yourself estate planning in a previous post. In case you didn’t see it or … Read more
An effortless and straightforward way to plan for the passing of your estate is to use beneficiary designations. The problem is that beneficiary designations don’t handle contingencies very well. Example: You have a son and a daughter. You name them both as beneficiaries of your life insurance policy. Your daughter predeceases you. What happens to … Read more
I participate in several online lawyer discussion groups. A few weeks ago, a fellow lawyer posted a story illustrating the dangers of do-it-yourself estate planning. The attorney telling the story said she received a call from a woman whose boyfriend recently died. The boyfriend had considerable wealth. He had consulted with an attorney about an … Read more
Contrary to popular opinion, your will doesn’t necessarily control how your assets pass at your death. You may hold most of your wealth in assets that pass outside of your will. For example, if you have a retirement plan, life insurance, or IRAs, those assets aren’t usually subject to probate. Your will does not affect … Read more
In Texas, co-owners of property can have a right of survivorship to the property they co-own. Co-ownership with the right of survivorship means that when one co-owner dies, the surviving co-owner becomes the sole owner of the property without the necessity of opening a probate estate. But, using this method of estate planning can cause … Read more
Example: Mary’s estate consists of two significant assets, a life insurance policy and a traditional IRA. Both assets are equal in value. To simplify and equally distribute her assets, Mary names her son as the beneficiary of her life insurance and her daughter as the beneficiary of her IRA. What is the problem with Mary’s … Read more
I have seen a lot of poorly drafted estate plans. Inexperienced attorneys wrote some of those plans. Financial planners and CPAs even wrote some of them. With the proliferation of wrong information on the internet, I have seen more than a few poorly written do-it-yourself estate plans from forms found on the web. It isn’t … Read more
If you don’t have an estate plan, Texas law has one for you. The state’s plan determines who gets your property based on their relationship to you and the type of property you own. Example: Bill and Julia have been married for twenty years. Together they have a son and a daughter. Bill also has … Read more
Many parents with minor children have not acquired substantial assets, so they use life insurance to provide financial security for the children in case one or both parents die. If you name your minor children as beneficiaries and they are minors when you die, the insurance company cannot legally pay the life insurance proceeds directly … Read more
I discourage clients from planning their estates around specific assets. There may be a compelling reason to do it in rare instances, but in most cases, it can result in unintended consequences. Example: John is a widower with three grown children. He wants to treat his children equally. In his will, John divides his assets equally … Read more