When an individual or couple creates a revocable living trust, they typically name themselves as the initial trustee. When they become incapacitated, die, or simply become tired with the role as trustee, a successor trustee is named. This successor usually comes in the form of a corporate trustee, professional fiduciary, or family member. The majority […]
Tag Archives: trust
Estate Planning and the NBA
31
May
Even for those who don’t follow the NBA, many have heard the news about Donald Sterling over the past couple months. This week, it was reported that Steve Ballmer would purchase the Los Angeles Clippers for $2 billion. Part of what made that sale possible was product of estate planning. Donald and his wife Shelly had […]
The Perils of Drafting Your Own Will or Trust
26
Mar
Estate planning used to be a niche carved out by attorneys who had been drafting wills and trusts for years. However, as technology has evolved, the options available to those looking for an estate plan have expanded. Not only are more attorneys preparing wills and trusts (which comes at its own risk), but the emergence […]
Estate Planning for Digital Assets
27
Nov
In the past year I’ve gotten more and more questions about what happens to someone’s online accounts when they pass away. This is certainly a great question that often goes unconsidered, even for people that have more formal estate planning in place. With the amount of information available in these accounts, both private and public, […]
The Lesson from James Gandolfini’s Tax “Disaster”
12
Jul
Stories involving celebrities and taxes pop up all the time. However, most of these stories deal with income tax evasion or tax fraud. A different type of celebrity tax story was released this week concerning the estate of James Gandolfini, the actor best known for playing the role of Tony Soprano. In what has been […]
The Basics of Estate Planning
17
May
It is common for people to approach me and say they need to setup an “estate plan,” but when I dive a little deeper and ask what they are looking for many people don’t know where to begin. While every person’s situation is different, the most frequent estate plan I draft for people centers around […]