Estate Planning Practice Blog

New & Redesigned Blog Coming Up!

Since our last post was about Michael Jackson's death in June, it may seem that his passing has caused the lack of posts since then. But in reality, the blog is being moved to a new domain, new host and will have a new look. Look here for more information in September about our new look and home!

We look forward to continuing to provide you with timely and informative posts about all things involving estate planning.

In the meantime, please check out our newly redesigned website for our firm here.

Celebrities Die Just Like the Rest of Us.

Three very notable celebrities have died. Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and now Michael Jackson. Each had families. Each had loved ones. Each had assets. And each had potential contestants to their estate. Did each have an estate plan in place that was updated and reflected their wishes?

Time will soon find out. The media will report if their estate administration turns out to be a mess like Anna Nicole Smith's was.

Ed was survived by his wife so his estate is likely to be less burdensome whether he had an estate plan in place or not. A surviving spouse generally has an easier time on formal estate administration than children or other loved ones.

If you are not married like Farrah or Michael were -- having an estate plan in place is very important especially if you want to provide for your partner or other loved one despite not being married.  Both Farrah and Michael had children that should be provided for. And Michael is survived by three young children. The mother of two of the children relinquished her parental rights so their guardianship and care may very well wind up being a contested matter.

You need to outline your wishes for disposition of your assets, nominate a successor trustee or executor to handle your affairs and otherwise make your wishes known.  Where there are minor children in place, it is very important to nominate guardians and have a trust in place in the event of your passing.

It simply does not matter who you are. An estate plan carefully drafted and funded in conjunction with your professional advisors, such as your attorney, accountant and financial advisors, is important. Important for everyone including celebrities.

May Ed, Farrah and Michael RIP.

Filing Fees Continue to Increase.

Filing fees for the Superior Court of Los Angeles County went up for 2009. You don't always realize how much court fees are until you have to ask your client to pay them. Sometimes the fee are cost-prohibitive and that preparing an estate plan in the first place would have come to the cost of the filing fee!

For example, estate planning for most clients of our firm range from $1,000 to $3,000 depending on the status of the individual, couple, complexity of the wishes and extent of the assets and real estate holdings.

And filing fees to open probate are (in Los Angeles County): $350.00

To open a conservatorship of an adult: $350.00. And you will need to pay for information package for conservators for $20. Plus pay for the conservatorship investigator fee of $479. There are other fees that arise depending on the type of paper filed as well. But for a minimum, to open a conservatorship matter in Los Angeles County -- it costs a whopping $849.00.

And to open a guardianship of a minor: $350. You will also have to pay for guardianship investigation fee of $868. This comes to $1218.00.

If you are married, own a home and have a minor child -- the following could very well occur if no estate plan is in place:

1. Probate of the home;
2. Possible opening of guardianship of the minor to receive life insurance proceeds; and
3. Possible opening of guardianship of the minor's person to determine custody of the child in accordance to the court's discretion if you haven't left your wishes in writing.

So, in that scenario -- it would cost at least $350 to open probate plus another $1218.00 to establish a guardianship.

Of course estate planning is not without its costs either after someone dies, but at least your wishes are in writing and you have avoided some of the attendant costs of having to immediately proceed straight to court. You may also want to consider the emotional cost of having your wishes in writing.

And yes, if you are no longer alive, you won't have to pay these filing fees yourself, but ultimately your estate will.

________

Estate Planning, Probate and Trusts involve complex areas of law. Individual circumstances must be considered before any advice can be given.  The general information above is not to be construed as legal advice, which can only be given after consideration of the unique facts of each matter. Please seek the advice or counsel of your attorney, financial advisor or CPA as it may be appropriate.

Scam Involving a Minor Fender Bender and Elderly Adults

Our local internet news source, LongBeachReport.com, (at www.lbreport.com) has posted a very interesting scam today involving our elders and minor traffic accidents.

LongBeachReport warns of recent incidents involving a very minor bump to the rear bumper of an elderly driver. Once the elderly driver exits his or her vehicle, the scammer politely offers to help the elder to search their wallet or purse for their insurance card and takes other valuable credit cards or information in the process.

Thanks LongBeachReport.com for this valuable warning. Please pass it along.

WSJ Article on Estate Planning in Dire Times

Click here to read a fascinating article on estate planning and why now is the time to do it.

It was a dark and stormy night... (oh, that's Snoopy, read the wiki on it here.)

The economy is a mess, home prices are reeling, and stocks have plunged. But for those likely to become ensnared in the estate tax, there's a silver lining: These troubled times offer some of the best opportunities in years to transfer wealth to younger generations, without triggering much or any inheritance tax along the way. Click here for the rest of the story.

Partner Mark Doyle in our Irvine office is the lead estate planning attorney for our firm and handles many of these complex issues on a routine basis for all of the firm's clients raised in the Wall Street Journal article linked in this post.

FDIC Insurance Limits Raised

Effective October 3 through December 31, 2009, President Bush signed a law raising the FDIC depositor insurance coverage limit to $250,000 per account subject to rules and upward adjustments.  See this link from the FDIC for more information.

As always, also discuss with your attorney, financial advisor or other advisor if you have questions or concerns about your FDIC coverage for your accounts. Our motto is better to be safe than sorry.

What If Your Bank Fails?

On everyone's mind these days... check out Liz Pulliam Weston's webarticle on this very timely topic. She has excellent information and things to ponder. Click here for more information.

On a related topic, with regards to living trusts, make sure your Schedule A is updated annually to reflect all of your bank accounts, financial accounts and other assets including real property (real estate) held in your trust. Be sure to transfer these assets as appropriate with advice from your attorney.

________
Estate Planning, Probate and Trusts involve complex areas of law. Individual circumstances must be considered before any advice can be given.  The general information above is not to be construed as legal advice, which can only be given after consideration of the unique facts of each matter. Please seek the advice or counsel of your attorney, financial advisor or CPA as it may be appropriate.

Big Time Conservatorship: Britney Spears.

Judge Reva Goetz in Department 9 at Los Angeles Superior Court, Central Courthouse granted a temporary conservatorship over Britney Spears on Friday, February 1, 2008. It is known that a conservatorship naming her father to manage her finances was granted. It is not clear if powers were granted to also make medical decisions by her father or another person.

Conservatorships are granted where there is a good showing that an individual is unable to properly care for themselves financially and/or medically.

The attorneys at Tredway, Lumsdaine & Doyle often appear before Judge Goetz on probate, trust and conservatorship matters. It is interesting to hear about our regular lives as attorneys intersect with those of celebrities especially in Los Angeles.

For more information, which I am sure is readily available everywhere on the net, click here.

James Brown's Estate Battles.

So, it's becoming clear that James Brown was a busy man. He had many children -- many who are being identified through DNA testing conducted after he died to determine paternity.

See here for interesting articles and links from E! News. And the New York Times jumped in with this article today:  Godfather of Soul; Father Many Times Over.

With the recent spate of celebrity deaths and their estates in the news (think Anna Nicole Smith, Chris Benoit and James Brown to name three), what will happen to your estate when you die? What will your loved ones be reporting about in their inner circle?

Who Will Inheirit Wrestler Chris Benoit's Estate?

The settlement of Chris Benoit's estate will be determined on who died first. MSNBC has been updating this story on the web. Click here to read the story. It's an interesting issue that intersects with state law and the absence of any estate planning documents.