Estate Planning

Many of my clients have heard me quip about how Bill Gates and Warren Buffett should be worried beginning New Year’s Day, 2010 because of the large target that Congress has placed squarely upon their backs. Now, to be honest, there is most likely no actual, physical threat to their lives because they have probably done appropriate estate planning. But this quip helps me to illustrate a point about Estate Taxes. On New Year’s Day 2010 – unless something happens within the next few weeks over in Washington D.C. – the Estate Tax or “Death Tax” will go away in a puff of smoke. In other words, as the laws currently stand, any one individual who dies in 2010 owning over $3.5 million worth of property will not have to pay Uncle Sam 1 red cent in estate taxes.

For the sake of illustration, let’s assume that Mr. Gates died “intestate” (i.e. without any wills or trusts in place) and that he wasn’t married.

The Ohio Supreme Court recently slapped a $6.4 million penalty upon two companies, American Family Prepaid Legal Corp. and Heritage Marketing and Insurance Services Inc., for the illegal practice of law (running a "Trust Mill") in that state.  These companies have also been banned from ever operating in Ohio again.

What is a "Trust Mill?"  Trust Mills are typically made up of individuals who sell insurance, annuities or other types of high-commission financial products.  

Blog Post by Melissa Platt, Esq.

Lesson #3: Every family with children must put into place a plan that specifies what should happen to their children, both in the short-term and the long-term, in the case of a parent’s death or incapacity.

Michael Jackson’s untimely death is another heartbreaking reminder that we never know when or how we’ll die. Responsible parents can no longer afford to think, “That won’t happen to me,” or “I’ll get around to it later.” Whatever you may think about MJ as a person, it’s undeniable that he was a devoted father.

Blog Post by Melissa Platt, Esq.

I’m sure we all have some memories associated with Michael Jackson Some of my memories include watching the music video “Thriller” for the first time, attempting the “moon walk,” and wondering what Disneyland’s “Captain EO” was all about. And now the King of Pop’s legacy includes several valuable lessons on estate planning as well.

Lesson #1: It’s not about the documents. In my opinion, one of the reasons why you do estate planning with an attorney is to have someone take you by the hand, advise you through the decision-making process, and guide you around potential pitfalls. Why else would you pay an attorney thousands of dollars for documents that you can get for a few hundred dollars (or less) online or from an office supply store?

Fellow Personal Family Lawyer, Alexis Martin Neely was recently interviewed on CNBC's "On The Money" program on the essentials of estate planning.  Her advice here is solid.