New York Estate Planning & Elder Law Blog

California Court Resolves Ownership Presumptions in Probate Disputes

Published on: November 8, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Family law addresses the rights of family members including spouses during marriages as well as after divorce. When one spouse passes away, however, complex estate planning issues can arise.

In the recent Third District case of In Estate of Wall, a federal district court held that title presumption had authority over community property presumptions. The court also found that the surviving spouse in the case still won the case due to the role of undue influence.

Benny Wall had two descendants with his first wife. Benny’s home

Avoid Falling for Myths about Slip and Falls

Published on: November 7, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Many people write off falls as a normal danger associated with the aging process. In reality, this could not be any further from the truth. While September was Fall Prevention Month, it’s important for the elderly and their loved ones to remain up to date about the various dangers associated with falls as well as what can be done to stop them.

Factors that Can Lead to Falls

Falls are the second most common factor for older individuals needing long-term care. Dementia is the most common factor. To prevent as well as treat the injuries and other damage caused by falls, it’s a good idea for patients as well as caregivers to inform themselves about what causes falls.

The Estate Planning Needs of the Unmarried

Published on: November 4, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Estate planning conversations often give off the impression that everyone is elderly and has multiple children. In reality, however, this is not true and people who do not fit this description require estate planning assistance at least as much as people who fall into more conventional models.

For example, unmarried individuals often also need to create an estate plan that relates to the disposition of property health care proxies, or financial power of attorney. Without these estate planning documents, if an unmarried person cannot make medical or financial choices, someone else might not exist who will be readily recognized.

Financial Power of Attorney

Understanding Psychiatric Advance Directives

Published on: November 3, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

In 1990, the United States Supreme Court acknowledged the constitutional right of a patient to decline medical treatment. Over the last couple of decades, New York state has slowly recognized that traditional health care advance directives do not sufficiently deal with mental health issues. Consequently, a large number of states have issued legislation permitting mental health care advance directives.

New York Law and Psychiatric Advance Directives

A person can utilize New York’s Health Care Agents and Proxies law to nominate an agent to make decisions for them if that individual cannot do so. Additionally, a person might decide to write a living will containing instructions for the mental health care that person would like to receive.

Revising Estate Plans Before and After Divorce

Published on: October 28, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

After a divorce, it’s understandable that you’re tired of sifting through legal documents. If you do not take the actions now to revise your estate plan in light of your divorce, you could end up facing undesirable estate planning results. As a result, you should at least consider gathering your old estate planning documents and evaluating what you will need to update. This article reviews a few of the most commonly used types of estate planning documents that you should make sure to update after a divorce.

Create a New Will

Wills are the central document in most estate plans. This is why it’s a good idea to make sure that your will is adequately updated in light of your divorce. You will likely want to create a will that will no longer pass on your assets to your former spouse. You should also make sure to revoke your old will.

Critical Estate Planning for Modern Families

Published on: October 24, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The rise in the number of divorcees in New York as well as the rest of the country has led to a larger amount of blended families. While similar in many ways to traditional families, blended families face some unique estate planning challenges. This article reviews some of the most important issues that blended families should consider when tackling estate planning

# 1 – Divorce Agreements

Your estate plan should reflect any applicable terms of your divorce agreement. This might mean including statements to provide for your former spouse or making sure that your children are sufficiently provided for following your death.

What You Should Know About Family Education Trusts

Published on: October 20, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Planning for your children’s educational needs is a worthwhile goal. Fortunately, various options exist for satisfying this goal. A 529 plan can prove to be a powerful tool for paying tuition as well as paying for other education-related expenses while realizing tax advantages.

Following your death, however, no certainty exists that later plan holders will continue utilizing these plans to pursue your educational goals. Instead, you might decide to create one or more 529 plans to make sure that your children, grand-children, or other loved ones can pursue educational objectives.

How 529 Plans Function

Approaching Tax Law Changes That You Should Know

Published on: October 16, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Democrats in the House of Representatives recently released their plan on how to adjust basic income and estate taxes for both businesses and families. While it’s impossible to provide a comprehensive review of what these various pages contained. This article addresses a few of the major announcements.

Only a few of the proposed changes would end up impacting either transactions or transfers that are made before the Act would be passed and many of these changes would not be implemented until January 1, 2022, but people who are being advised to transfer substantial values to irrevocable trusts as gifts before exemptions amount are lowered by half or people might be required to plan to gift the amounts to people or entities other than grantor trusts.

Estate and Gift Tax Exemptions

Lessons Learned from the Management of the Late James Brown’s Estate

Published on: October 12, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

A June article in the New York Times reports that progress is finally occurring in the resolution of the estate of the late James Brown. Despite a clear intent that his estate is used for underprivileged children in Georgia and South Carolina, however, the late James Brown’s estate is yet to be used in such a way. This article reviews some of the helpful tips that the late James Brown could have followed to avoid facing such obstacles.

# 1 – Understand the Nature of Your Assets

If your estate includes music ownership rights or any other type of intellectual property, it’s a good idea to gain a basic understanding of the nature of these rights and how they can be handled in your estate. One of the rights held by musicians is the right to perform or play a piece publicly, which is more commonly known as “performance rights”. When a person passes away, these rights can dissolve and become lost if not properly handled.

The Challenge of Dealing with Children Born During and Outside Marriage

Published on: October 8, 2021 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The difference between children born during a marriage and those born outside of marriage might seem insignificant, but this issue can become a substantial one for people who are navigating estate planning issues.

In a recent case, Hollywood producer Steve Bing passed away with two illegitimate children. Steve’s father had created various trusts for the benefit of future grandchildren in 1980. Before Steve’s death, some litigation had occurred involving trusts. The dispute arising from the trusts addressed the meaning of the word, “grandchild”, as it was used in the trust’s tools. The trustee had taken on the view that “grandchild” did not include grandchildren born out of wedlock who had not lived as regular members of their natural parent while minors. Steve Bing had not resided with his children as regular members of his household.

This case raises issues common to many jurisdictions in respect to definitions used in trusts as well as other estate planning tools.