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New Tax-Related Numbers for 2015
JANUARY 12, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 2 Welcome to 2015! Who thought we’d ever make it? The Internal Revenue Service did, that’s who. They’ve busily updated numbers for the upcoming year; most of the new...
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“No-Contest” Clause in Trust Can Be As Effective As Will Provision
JANUARY 19, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 3 When we prepare wills and/or trusts for our clients, they often ask if they should include a “no-contest” provision. Typically, they want us to add language that...
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Top Ten Reasons You Might Want a Trust, Rather Than Just a Will
JANUARY 26, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 4 Do you need a living trust? Even with an estate tax threshold of over $5 million (and double that, for most married couples)? That is the primary question posed by...
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Top Ten Reasons to Skip the Living Trust and Sign a Will Instead
FEBRUARY 2, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 5 Last week we suggested some of the reasons why you might think about having a revocable living trust as part of your estate planning documents. This week we’ll try...
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Medicare Savings Programs: QMB, SLMB, QI, QDWI and Extra Help
FEBRUARY 9, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 6 Health care programs for the elderly, the poor and the disabled can be complicated and confusing. We frequently find that clients are unclear about the differences —...
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Court Rejects Challenge to Living Trust After Settlor’s Death
FEBRUARY 16, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 7 Jessica Waltham (not her real name) died tragically in 2012, when her home south of Tucson burned down. She left a small estate, three sons and a bubbling dispute...
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Nursing Home Resident’s Lawyer Did Nothing Wrong
FEBRUARY 23, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 8 From time to time we report on cases in which lawyers are disciplined for behavior involving clients who are older or have disabilities. We do that not out of any...
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Financial Exploitation Case Leads to Judgment, Disinheritance
MARCH 2, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 9 We hear variations on this same story once every week or so. Dad (it might be Mom, or Aunt Bridget, or a long-time family friend) seemed to be adrift after his wife...
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Choosing a Personal Representative for Your Estate
Have you decided who you should name as personal representative of your estate (and successor trustee of your trust, and agent under your financial and health care powers of attorney)? Make sure you’ve...
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Does Your Existing Trust Split Into Two Shares On a Spouse’s Death?
MARCH 9, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 10 A letter from a reader asks: “My husband and I set up a revocable trust which will divide our assets in half when one of us dies. This was to avoid estate taxes. Now...
View ArticleIncome Taxation of the Self-Settled Special Needs Trust
MARCH 16, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 11 This time of year, we are often asked about income tax issues — especially when a trust is involved. It may take us several newsletters, but let’s see if we can’t...
View ArticleIncome Taxation of the Third-Party Special Needs Trust
MARCH 23, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 12 Last week we wrote about how to handle income tax returns for self-settled special needs trusts. Our simple message: such trusts will always be “grantor trusts”, an...
View ArticleIncome Taxation of Trusts — Not Just Special Needs Trusts
APRIL 6, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 13 We have previously explained the income taxation of self-settled special needs trusts and third-party special needs trusts. We focused on special needs trusts because,...
View ArticleManaging a Special Needs Trust — The Handbook
APRIL 13, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 14 Are you named as trustee of a special needs trust? Are you a trust beneficiary, wondering about how the trust should be administered? Or are you a parent or...
View ArticleHealth Care Directives — Advice for Snowbirds and Travelers
APRIL 20, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 25 Arizona weather is beautiful, especially this time of year. We do have our weather challenges — for most of the state, that means the summer months — but there is no...
View ArticleWhy You Aren’t Really Limited to $14,000 in Gifts Each Year
APRIL 27, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 26 There is so much misinformation (and misunderstanding) around gift taxes, that we thought we would take a few moments and try to straighten out the confusion. Let’s...
View ArticleThe Patient Self Determination Act and Trends in Advance Directives
MAY 4, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 17 Last month the U.S. Government Accountability Office released a short report on the use of advance directives in hospitals, nursing homes and other health care...
View ArticleSavings and Income at Death Indicate Retirement Shortfall
MAY 11, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 18 You’ve probably read and/or heard about concerns that Americans do not save enough money to get through their retirement. A recent report from the Employee Benefit...
View ArticleIs Dispute Inevitable When Two Children are Named as Co-Trustees?
MAY 18, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 19 So often our clients assure us that their children are different from other children. Our clients know that their children will fundamentally get along. They are sure...
View ArticleTrust-Owned Property Is Not Proper Subject of Arizona Beneficiary Deed
JUNE 1, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 20 Arizona is one of about a dozen states permitting “beneficiary” deeds. Some states have the same concept but use a different term, like the inelegant “revocable...
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