Last Wills - What the Experts Say!

  No one wants to think of the possibility of death - that is, his/her own death. But it is important to make sure that your family and other loved ones are provided for if anything happens to you. If you don't have a will then now is the time to give it serious thought. If you have made a will and you want to make amendments then do so now because it will be too late to make More...

Assigning a caretaker under the law is a vital concern for any parent or guardian. Your ward or child is among the most important people in your life; a legal guardianship is your only way to ensure that he or she is protected should anything happen to you. In addition, currently appointed legal guardians must often wade through a lot of confusing legislation to help ensure the well-being of More...

  Do you donate money to charity each year?   Perhaps you donate to an organization dedicated to finding a cure for an awful disease that has affected your life or the life of your loved ones. Perhaps you choose to benefit organizations that support and encourage positive growth in our youth, such as the local YMCA.  Perhaps you are an animal lover and choose to support More...

Estate planning and choosing a guardian to take care of your children is difficult. It's not easy to think of anyone else raising your children, no matter how loving your family members or friends are. Yet, you can make a tremendous difference in your child's life by planning ahead. And you have nothing to lose except a few moments thinking about what you value most in life, and in More...

  When a person writes a will, they are leaving their property to persons and entities of their choosing. These gifts are legally binding, in the sense that the beneficiaries get legal title to whatever property is left to them. A will cannot be used to compel someone to do something, however. One cannot have a provision in a will directing a person to give all their money to a More...

Question: My father wants to read his wife's (my mother's) last will and testament because my aunt got all rights to everything my mother owned/had, but my father thinks that my aunt is doing things that went way beyond what the will stated. I need to know how he can go about getting a copy of the will and testament and what are his rights to having it? T. Answer: Dear T - More...

  If you have young children, selecting someone to care for your minor children may be one of the most difficult aspects of planning your estate. It's difficult to choose someone to raise your child, no matter how loving someone might be. But should the unexpected happen, you can avoid potentially disastrous court hearings and make a tremendous difference in your child's life More...

  Estate planners use the term "natural objects of one's bounty" to refer to those individuals who would be expected to receive a share of a person's estate upon his or her death. Normally, the natural objects of a person's bounty are members of the immediate family who would take a share of the estate if the person died without a will. For example, if a woman More...

  In all states except Louisiana, a parent may legally disinherit an adult child, provided the parent transfers his property to someone else during lifetime or leaves his property to someone else under a valid will. This article discusses the pitfalls a parent must avoid and the steps a parent should take for an effective disinheritance of a child.   Intestate More...

  There is value in the story of an older client who had seen a very interesting clause employed in a will. There was a great deal of money at stake and the many family members had little reason to love each other, because they had never met and never knew of each other’s existence. It was expected that the will would be heavily contested on several different fronts in every More...

  In the not overly distant past, the writings of the testator were the only evidence of his or her intentions and mental capacity. Undue influence was harder to defend against when the only evidence was the testator’s writings and the recollection of those around them. Imagine the scene, the packed court room (perhaps I have a flair for the dramatic), the testimony as to the More...

  The year was 1981, the state was Florida, and I had just flown back from Germany for my father's funeral. My sister and her family were down from New York, and, a few days after the funeral, we were sitting with my mother in a lawyer's office in downtown Pensacola. My mother had just learned that she didn't have any say over what happened to the money she and my father More...

  "I'm concerned that if I died first, and I just left all my assets to John, that he could get remarried or simply decide for whatever reason not to leave my boys anything upon his death." Sarah's heartfelt concern is shared by many individuals who are in a second marriage, where children can be his, hers, and theirs. Taxes are not the issue; protecting one's More...

  The "rule against perpetuities" is often described as one of the most complicated legal rules ever! It's origin stems from the days of feudal England - some say as early as 1680 - when landowners often tried to control the use and disposition of property beyond the grave - a concept often referred to as control by the "dead hand." The rule against perpetuities was intended More...

  Many people believe that they should establish a Revocable Trust in order to facilitate the administration of their estate upon their passing. In many cases, a Will, or Will substitutes, such as joint ownership and beneficiary designations, will accomplish the same goals as a Trust thereby making a Trust unnecessary. In order to determine whether a Trust is right for you, it is More...

In our estate litigation practice,” says Attorney Elyse C. Herman, “inquiries from persons seeking to contest a decedent's last will and testament are on the rise. Often the inquiry comes as the result of a parent having made an unequal distribution among his or her children, favoring one child and excluding other children as beneficiaries. There are two grounds for More...

  A common question estate planning and elder law attorneys often get asked is "Do I really need a will?" (The next question is always, "How much does it cost?" but we'll discuss that another day!) Most people would assume that an estate planning attorney would always answer "Yes, of course," but such is not the case. Many people simply have no More...