By Peter K. Kelly | Leonore Abels in her Will provided that her residuary pass in trust for her husband Joel Abels and, in the alternative should he predecease her, all of her property be sold, except her house, and held by the trustee to maintain... Read More
Banks Often Refuse to Accept Powers of Attorney One of the things that's becoming more and more frustrating for trusts and estates lawyers in Florida is the refusal of banks and other financial institutions to accept properly drafted powers of... Read More
Dear Liza: Does a person receiving a gift from a sibling in another country have to pay gift tax on that gift in the United States? In the United States, gifts are not considered ordinary income, so you don’t have to report them or pay income tax... Read More
By Honorable Jennifer Rivera Ulwick Unlike conservators, guardians do not handles finances, acting as conservators as they may have in the past when appointed as "guardian of the estate." Unless otherwise provided by the court, the guardian... Read More
In an October online article in The Wall Street Journal , the reporter described how Congress is examining large IRAs, and IRAs holding real estate and closely held business interests. Congress’ concern is that IRA income tax advantages are being... Read More
By Shirley L. Kovar | In this Emerging Issues Analysis, Shirley L. Kovar, a partner in the Estate & Trust Litigation Practice and International Private Client groups at Henderson, Caverly, Pum & Charney, LLP in San Diego, identifies some of... Read More
By Linda B. Hirschson and Shifra Herzberg The proliferation of technology has moved communication, banking, networking, games, photos and music to the digital arena. In this Emerging Issues Analysis, Linda B. Hirschson, a shareholder in Greenberg Traurig's... Read More
By: John G. Farinacci Estate disputes have been called "divorces of siblings." Although sibling disputes over their parent's estates are common, there are many other relationships that result in estate disputes as well. However, the point... Read More
Russ Alan Prince, for Forbes, published an article on October 13, titled "The Very Wealthy Embrace Severe Disaster Contingency Planning." The article outlined how today, "the exceptionally wealthy [are] vulnerable to geopolitical instability... Read More
Dear Liza: My dad named his mother as his beneficiary, but she passed away in 2004. My dad died in 2013 but didn’t change his beneficiary. I am my father’s only child and he has no wife, so who gets the money ? When a person dies and there’s... Read More
By John G. Farinacci Estate litigators see a wide variety of disputed issues since the affairs of decedents are as diverse as the types of people they were during their lives. However, we also see many of the same or similar fact patterns. One of these... Read More
By: Jennifer F. Hillman, Esq. Medical technology continues to advance at a rapid pace. Since the first “test tube” baby was born on July 25, 1978, the field of artificial reproduction has blossomed. According to the United Stated Department... Read More
By Jennifer F. Hillman The phrase “tangible personal property” is a term of art frequently utilized by estate practitioners when drafting documents. However, what is, and what is not tangible personal property is not always clear. A recent... Read More
By John Dugan Massachusetts law provides for the execution, administration and governance of health care proxies. A health care proxy is a written instrument signed by a competent adult appointing another competent adult to make health care decisions... Read More
by David Shulman I’ve written before about estate planning for your digital assets and online accounts. Well this article isn’t necessarily about planning , but what happens after you die – especially if you don’t plan (or even... Read More