In a recent post, I discussed how to dispose of special items of personal property by giving them to a particular named person – these are called “specific bequests.” The specific bequests are usually the items that are most important or significant to the person making a Will – such…
Minority and/or Disability Trusts are often added as a standard clause in a Will, providing that if any assets are left to a young or incapacitated person who is not receiving Supplemental Security Income (a Special Needs Trust is required if SSI is involved), those assets will be held in…
Consolidate your bank accounts I like many people, open bank accounts for the sole purpose of saving for something special. It might be a special vacation, a birthday party, a new car, or whatever. Then after the occasion has passed, I often leave the account open with a little bit…
Yes, definitely. Many of our clients want to leave some of their money to one or more charities at their death. Usually these gifts are made by way of a “specific bequest” – a gift of a specific amount of money to a particular charity upon your death or, if…
Assume for the moment that you live in Pennsylvania and have reached that stage in your life where you are married, have two young children, a dog and two cars. You both work, have life insurance and some IRA retirement money. You believe your biggest asset is your house, which…
Most of us prepare a Will to dispose of our money and house after we die. But sometimes a gift of a particular item is of great importance, for those of us who deep down believe that tangible items are often more valuable than money. Others of us want to…
Because Pennsylvania defines marriage as between one man and one woman, there are challenges for same gender couples and other unmarried couples that must be considered when planning estates for either of these real-life situations. Similarly, the Defense of Marriage Act, (DOMA) which is a federal law, defines marriage as…
In our last post I discussed the type of person who would make a good executor or executrix. Sometimes, however, the Court has to appoint a person to be a decedent’s Personal Representative – if there is no Will, or if the Will was improperly prepared, or if it is…
When you meet with an attorney to draft your estate planning documents, the attorney will ask you for the names of people to serve in various roles. Among these is the role of “Personal Representative,” who is called an “Executor” if a male and an “Executrix” if a female. The…