Earlier this year, a survey of estate planning professionals across a range of professions revealed that the biggest obstacle in the estate planning process isn’t taxes, legal requirements, or expense—it’s your family. More specifically, 44% of those surveyed by TD [...]
A combination of advances in medical science, longer life spans, people marrying later, second marriages, and other factors mean that many Americans have children later in life than was the norm just a generation ago. In 2000, more than 23% [...]
When you hear about an alternative estate planning option such as a living trust, one of the key selling points mentioned is often that you can “avoid probate.” However, if you don’t know much about estate law, you may be [...]
When you’re planning for your own future and providing for your loved ones, it is always beneficial to have the knowledgeable guidance of an experienced estate lawyer. Though forms and software abound to help you create documents, there’s no substitute [...]
Once upon a time, estate planning revolved largely around disposition of assets after your death. This was most often managed through a will, though some property might be titled to pass automatically to a surviving spouse or other family member. [...]
New Jersey residents got relief from state estate taxes earlier this year. After a multi-year step-down process, state estate taxes were wholly eliminated for those who died on or after January 1, 2018. Now, the federal government has raised the [...]
Estate planning for mixed families is a bit more complicated, and requires specific consideration of the treatment of stepchildren and the path assets will follow after the death of one spouse. When one or both spouses has children with someone [...]
Often, people think about asset protection simply as a way to minimize risk during their lifetimes, separating risk management from estate planning. However, asset protection for beneficiaries can play a significant role in estate planning—especially when there are concerns about [...]
When you start thinking about protecting your loved ones with an estate plan, the terminology you encounter may be confusing. Maybe you’re thinking about creating a will, but then you see mention of self-proving wills (which are just ordinary wills [...]
The widowed, childless millionaire leaving his entire estate to a Pekingese and the wealthy woman disinheriting her children in favor of a Persian cat are largely the stuff of fiction. On the rare occasion that someone actually leaves a fortune [...]