Yes. If you own a business, you need an estate plan to avoid delays, tax exposure or leadership gaps. Without one, your company may face probate, which can disrupt operations and create legal uncertainty. How your business changes estate planning Business assets –...
Many adults have debts throughout their adulthood. One question many don’t think about is what’s going to happen to those debts when they die. If you have any debts, including ones such as credit card bills or mortgages, your estate will likely be the entity to handle...
You can’t always know what will happen to your assets after you pass away. However, you can have some control over who inherits from your estate. Protecting your legacy from being mismanaged or wasted may require an incentive trust. An incentive trust is a legal...
Thanks to a new law that just took effect this April, more California estate assets can be excluded from probate even if they aren’t placed in a revocable living trust or other steps aren’t taken to avoid the sometimes lengthy and costly process. In California,...
As an executor (also known as a personal representative), you probably pictured a pretty straightforward probate. You’d gather assets, pay off debts and then distribute what’s left according to the will’s instructions. Unfortunately, things don’t always unfold so...
When making an estate plan, you may have a beneficiary that you want to leave a significant inheritance to, but you feel that it is not the right time. It would be better if you could delay it until they were a bit older. For example, perhaps you have a child who is...
An estate plan can certainly be written with relatively equal bequests. If you have multiple beneficiaries, they all receive a similar portion of the estate. It can sometimes be hard to split up sentimental items, but you could divide financial assets equally or leave...
Personal representatives administering estates generally need to be competent multitaskers. They need to manage multiple challenging issues at once. They may need to occasionally attend hearings in court. They have to secure and properly manage estate resources. They...
A vacation home is often a prized family asset. Whether it is a cabin in Tahoe, a vineyard retreat or a coastal property, these places carry strong memories. Passing them to children, however, can trigger estate taxes, higher property tax assessments and disagreements...
Succession planning is an essential facet of the long-term operation of any family business. It involves selecting and grooming future leaders who will take over ownership and management responsibilities. Unlike non-family enterprises, succession in family businesses...