Estate Planning Practice Blog

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.

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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.