The average age of the person divorcing in the US right now is age 50. Surprisingly, estate attorney Elizabeth Westby says, “I cannot tell you how many dissolutions I have right now where the parties have been married 30 to 40 years.”   There are many community property states. If you live in a community property state, you need to reconsider how assets are held. “Community property” is a term that refers to how the property during a marriage is viewed in the eyes of the courts. In community property states, all property accumulated by a husband and wife during their marriage becomes joint property. In plain terms, this means that all property belongs to both husband and wife equally if it was acquired during the marriage. This is even true if it was originally acquired in the name of only one partner. Conversely, all property acquired before marriage, or through a gift or inheritance during marriage, is presumed to be the sole and separate property of the spouse who has acquired the property.  As with anything in law, there are exceptions, but this is the general rule.   The character of property as community or sole & separate can be   Read more…

First rule of thumb: Business is business. Verbal agreements that can’t be substantiated are worthless. It seems to always disintegrate into he said, she said. Documenting transactions, identifying expectations of both parties and using paper trail exchanges can save you from arbitration, going to court and destroying relationships, especially among family and friends. Consider this real life horror story regarding not paying attention to the docs you’re signing. Enter into the story: a woman in her early 60’s is working two jobs, supporting her disabled daughter and another daughter who has a child with her boyfriend. The boyfriend’s sister was living there, but had moved out. All of them lived together in a home that the woman had been paying the mortgage on for years. The boyfriend decided to get a new girlfriend and move out. Then, out of nowhere, the boyfriend’s sister decided she wanted the house. The woman and her daughters believed she had signed a lease agreement with an option to purchase. The woman thought she recalled three names on the deed, one of them being her own. A title company search revealed that there was only one name on the deed. And it wasn’t hers; it   Read more…

The term professional is a non-descript adjective that is too generic to qualify as a potential advocate for the disposition of your assets, health directives, and child guardianship. Even some attorneys, who have general practices, may not qualify as an estate planner. Vetting an attorney is more than stalking their LinkedIn bio, checking out the local community’s business accreditation and confirming good standing with the Bar. You need third party references from friends and business associates that have a track record of dependable recommendations to add to your online search. Choosing an attorney is selecting the financial steward of the family, a most trusted member of the family. In the Godfather, Tom Hagen is the “consigliere”, an adopted son with the Corleone family. He is the family counselor and confidant. His fiduciary responsibility can’t be underscored enough. He is deeply knowledgeable about personal family matters. He represents the family in the public domain both in legal matters and sometimes-financial matters as well. In today’s world the estate attorney may be evolving into this old world idea of family fiduciary, the quarterback of the family’s team. He has subordinate team members such as financial advisers, insurance professionals, real estate brokers, bank   Read more…