Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPLesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLP2024-03-18T21:33:07Zhttps://www.llphlegal.com/feed/atom/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/sites/1301773/2021/01/cropped-site-icon-image-lesser-32x32.pngOn Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492512024-03-18T21:33:07Z2024-03-18T21:33:07ZWhen making an estate plan, it’s important to be aware that the transfer of assets can take some time. Just because you chose a specific beneficiary to inherit a certain amount of money does not mean that they take control immediately when you pass away. The estate executor has to inventory the assets, and then the estate has to go through probate while those assets are distributed.
If you want your beneficiaries to have access to this cash more quickly – perhaps so that they can use it for funeral arrangements or other necessary costs – then one option is to use a Payable On Death account. How does this type of account work?
Choosing a beneficiary
Similar to an estate plan, you pick a beneficiary with a Payable On Death account. This beneficiary then takes over control of the account in the event of your passing. For instance, if you have a savings account at the local bank, you can add a beneficiary designation to turn it into a POD account. Often, all the beneficiary needs to do is provide proper documentation – like a death certificate – to the financial institution. The POD account does not have to go through probate. This means that the transfer can be much faster and may only take a few days. It also means that disputes are less likely since the account isn’t part of the estate plan in the traditional sense and cannot be challenged.
Setting up your plan
Payable On Death accounts are just one estate planning tool that you may want to consider. Take the time to carefully look into all of your legal options when making an estate plan for your family.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492502024-03-05T02:41:13Z2024-03-05T02:41:12ZEstate planning can open a path to wealth preservation
As you know, estate planning safeguards your financial assets and minimizes potential tax burdens on your beneficiaries. It also involves creating tools that complement rather than contradict one another to prevent financial loss (for example, through taxes) when addressing wealth preservation.
Another effective preservation tool is developing gifting tactics that help strategically reduce the size of your taxable estate. Remember, the annual and lifetime gift tax exclusions are adjusted each year. Implementing this estate planning strategy can save considerable sums.
Customization enhances protection
The important thing is to make sure that you get experienced estate planning and wealth preservation guidance. This can help you customize your options to help ensure that your entire estate plan continues to your assets and wealth.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492492024-02-19T21:04:57Z2024-02-19T21:04:57Z6 reasons it may be appropriate to ask for a trustee’s removal
There are numerous reasons to challenge a trustee and ask the court to replace them. Some of the most frequent issues include:
They breach their fiduciary duty: Trustees are legally bound to act in the best interest of the beneficiaries of the trust. Any failure to manage the trust with care can constitute a breach of their moral and legal obligations. Examples include self-dealing, mismanagement of funds or poor investment decisions.
There are conflicts of interest: Trustees must avoid any conflicts of interest that may compromise their ability to make impartial decisions. If a trustee has personal or financial interests that conflict with those of the beneficiaries, it could lead to decisions that prioritize their own well-being over their duty.
They refuse to communicate: Transparency and open communication are important in trust administration. If a trustee fails to keep beneficiaries informed about the trust's status, financial matters or any other relevant information, that’s a legitimate concern.
They’re holding onto the assets too hard: One of the primary responsibilities of a trustee is to distribute assets to the beneficiaries per the terms of the trust. If a trustee unreasonably delays or refuses to distribute assets without a valid reason, beneficiaries may have grounds for challenging the trustee’s position.
They won’t obey the trust: Similarly, trustees are bound by the terms and conditions laid down in the trust. While some trustees have a lot of discretionary power, they cannot use that power in a way contrary to the intentions or rules of the trust.
They are not capable of the job: A trustee must possess the necessary skills and capacity to fulfill their duties effectively. If a trustee is incompetent or incapacitated, it can jeopardize the proper administration of the trust.
If you’re concerned about a trustee’s actions, it’s wise to get legal guidance. Swift action can help prevent a situation from escalating and causing real harm to a trust.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492422024-02-05T01:12:19Z2024-02-05T01:12:19ZIdentifying the right candidate
Granting power of attorney involves choosing a trustworthy individual who will act in your best interest. This person should have the ability to handle financial matters and legal documents and potentially make critical healthcare decisions on your behalf. Deciding between a family member and a professional as your attorney-in-fact is a significant choice. While family members may personally understand your preferences, professionals bring expertise to complex legal and financial matters. Overall, it would help to consider factors such as trustworthiness, availability and financial acumen when selecting an attorney-in-fact.
The process of granting power of attorney
Once you've identified the right candidate, the next step involves the creation of legally binding documentation. This typically includes drafting a power of attorney form specifying the scope and duration of the powers granted. It's vital to confirm the validity of your power of attorney document to avoid complications down the line. This involves proper notarization and adherence to any state-specific requirements.
When to grant power of attorney
While the immediate need for power of attorney may not be apparent, proactive planning is advisable. Emergencies, unexpected health issues or travel may necessitate having a designated individual with legal authority named in the event of incapacity. In cases of degenerative conditions, granting power of attorney before facing incapacity can ensure that your affairs are managed seamlessly. This proactive approach may minimize stress for both you and your loved ones during uniquely challenging times.
Deciding whom to grant power of attorney authority is critical to planning for the future. By understanding the basics, identifying the right candidate and following a thorough legal process, you can better safeguard your interests.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492412024-01-30T01:55:26Z2024-01-30T01:55:26ZOver the past decade or so, you may have noted that your online presence and digital assets have become nearly as significant as many of your physical possessions. If so, you’re not alone. And it’s due to this trend that digital estate planning is becoming increasingly important for young and older adults alike.
Digital estate planning involves making arrangements for your digital assets in the event of your incapacity or death. These digital assets may include social media accounts, online banking and investment accounts, email accounts, digital photo libraries, domain names and access to any kind of account that is password protected. Without a clear plan for these assets, managing your digital legacy can be a complex and distressing task for your loved ones.
Making this effort can also help safeguard your interests
If you have not yet embraced digital estate planning it’s important to understand that it can help to ensure the security and privacy of your online information. In the absence of clear instructions, your digital assets could be at risk of misuse. By planning your digital estate, you can decide what happens to your online accounts and who should have access to them, protecting your digital legacy from unauthorized access or management in ways that you wouldn’t approve of. Another crucial concern is the sentimental value of digital assets. For many people, digital photos, videos and social media accounts hold precious memories. By planning for these digital assets, you can better ensure that your loved ones have access to these memories and can preserve them as a part of your legacy.Finally, digital estate planning is important for financial and administrative reasons. Many people manage their finances online, including investments, bank accounts and even debt. Without access to these digital assets, handling your estate can become more challenging for your loved ones. Digital estate planning allows you to provide necessary access and instructions to manage these assets efficiently.As this area of law continues to evolve, so will the legal process and procedures associated with digital estate planning. Therefore, it’s wise to stay informed about anything you may need to do to keep your digital estate planning efforts current and enforceable. ]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492362024-01-25T18:04:15Z2024-01-25T18:04:15ZYour executor will perform crucial duties. From managing your estate to keeping beneficiaries and interested parties reasonably informed. Thus, it's crucial to reimburse them for their services. This can be a no-brainer if you hire a professional executor. But you can also pay a loved one who accepts the role.
Here is how you can do this:
Consider factors related to your estate
Your executor deserves reasonable compensation, which will depend on the circumstances related to your estate. Some of the factors to consider include how much time they will spend executing your estate, the complexity of the estate and the estate's uniqueness.For example, if you have unique assets like digital ones, your executor will have to find experts to determine their values and learn how to manage them, which can take time. Thus, you need to compensate them accordingly.
Consider the estate's expenses
Your executor will handle some expenses before the probate process is complete. These include funeral expenses, debts, bills, taxes, closing costs of property sales, attorney fees, court fees and so on.Consider leaving enough cash for them to cover these expenses. If you choose not to do so, your executor will pay these costs out-of-pocket. Therefore, you need to reimburse them.Further, you can help your executor avoid certain expenses. For example, your will can waive the surety bond requirement. Working closely with your executor to help them understand your estate in-depth and connecting them with professionals on your team can also be beneficial, as it may reduce the time they spend executing the estate. The amount you reimburse your executor will depend on your estate and the state laws. Learn more about the circumstances surrounding your estate to compensate your executor reasonably. ]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492352024-01-10T00:32:29Z2024-01-10T00:32:29ZWhen some individuals decide to make an estate plan, they just pay attention to their largest assets. Who gets the family home? What happens to the vacation home or the cabin? How do they divide their investment portfolio or a substantial bank account? They focus on passing large assets or amounts of money to the next generation.
But for smaller items, they may assume that their adult children and other beneficiaries can sort it all out on their own. This assumption can lead to serious conflicts and even estate disputes.
The role of sentimental items
The issue is that many of these smaller items may not have the same financial value, but they have much more sentimental value. Examples include artwork, dish collections, book collections, jewelry, clothing items and much more.If these items are not addressed in the estate plan, beneficiaries may argue about who should receive which ones. Two people may both claim that they thought they were supposed to get a certain item – or that their parents even verbally stated that the item was for them – and there’s no way to resolve this dispute after their parents have passed away.In other situations where there’s a conflict of ownership, it’s common to sell the item and divide the money. But this doesn’t work if the conflict is over sentimental value. If the item was sold, not only would the family members not receive much money for it, but the actual item that each person wanted would be entirely lost. An item could be worth almost nothing to the public and still be very important to specific family members. With family heirlooms, inventive legal solutions are often needed. It’s quite important to keep this in mind when doing estate planning or going through the probate process.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492322024-01-02T14:43:58Z2024-01-02T14:43:58Zpower of attorney for health care and one for finances, or you can designate the same individual to assume both responsibilities. Discussing your wishes for medical care and finances with the individuals you put in these positions is a good idea so they understand what’s expected of them.
What is a health care power of attorney?
A health care power of attorney allows someone to make medical decisions if you’re incapacitated. They work closely with your healthcare providers and can step in if your advance directives don’t include terms about your current needs.
What is a financial power of attorney?
A financial power of attorney allows someone to make decisions about your money and assets if you’re incapacitated. They can pay your bills, manage your bank accounts, take care of your investments and sell or purchase assets. Powers of attorney designations become invalidated if you pass away. The person who administers your estate will assume power over it after your death.
Remember, a power of attorney is only one part of your estate plan. Seeking legal guidance can make setting up a comprehensive plan easier. Getting this done as soon as possible may help you to feel peace of mind since you’ll know that your interests are taken care of if something happens to you.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492312023-12-13T14:34:49Z2023-12-13T14:34:49ZIt may take more than an omission
Some people will try to disinherit beneficiaries by declining to mention them in their estate planning paperwork. Someone with three children may write a will instructing the estate administrator to divide all assets between two of their children, for instance. They believe that an omission makes it clear that the third child is supposed to get nothing.
But, in many cases, omitting someone from an estate plan is not enough. It’s better to include a clause in one’s will directly stating that a specific individual is not supposed to receive any assets. Another tactic that people sometimes use to make their intentions clearly known is to leave someone a very small amount of assets, like leaving them a dollar.
Either way, the goal of these efforts is to show that the omission of a beneficiary is intentional. It’s not an oversight. That person wasn’t forgotten. Another heir didn’t fraudulently delete their name from the estate plan. By including a disinheritance clause, what the writer wanted is clear to all involved. This lowers the odds of an estate dispute.
Drafting your plan
Estate planning can get complicated, especially when significant assets are being addressed or issues like disinheriting a child arise. If you are thinking about drafting a plan this year, make sure you know exactly what legal steps you’ll need to take moving forward. Seeking legal guidance is a good way to get started.]]>On Behalf of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLPhttps://www.llphlegal.com/?p=492302023-12-05T00:48:56Z2023-12-05T00:48:56ZMedical and mental health issues can affect capacity
Illinois has laws addressing probate matters and the capacity of an adult to draft legally-binding documents. Most adults have the necessary capacity to draft legally-binding documents. However, certain medical challenges or mental health issues could compromise someone's testamentary capacity. For example, Alzheimer's disease and other conditions that cause dementia could leave someone incapable of really understanding the impact of drafting or altering estate planning paperwork. Mental health issues including schizophrenia could also affect someone's capacity to draft valid estate documents.
Those hoping to contest a will on grounds of incapacity will usually need medical records affirming someone's diagnosis. They may also need secondary evidence about their conduct to prove that they were incapable of understanding the documents they drafted and the impact they would have on others. Someone generally needs to know what the documents will do, who their family members are and what property they own to have testamentary capacity.
Statements from witnesses, records from assisted living facilities and even personal financial records can show that someone was no longer capable of fully managing their own affairs or understanding the impact of the documents they created. The complexity of the paperwork can also influence the court's decision on the matter. A successful challenge based on a lack of capacity might lead to the courts reinstating an older version of someone's will. The courts could also treat their estate as though they died without a will.
Learning more about the scenarios that lead to probate litigation may help people advocate for themselves and the true desires of the deceased in extreme cases.]]>