Kennedy, 52, committed suicide at her home in Bedford, New York, and her body was found Wednesday. She was interred Saturday at a cemetery in the town, which is north of New York City. Political luminaries and celebrities including Glenn Close and Susan Sarandon attended the service.
]]> Kennedy was married to activist and politician Robert F. Kennedy, but the two had encountered difficulties in their marriage and were estranged from one another. Robert F. Kennedy has not commented publicly on his wife's death, so it is not clear how much he knew about her struggle with depression and how it had recently gotten much worse.Because life is unpredictable and no one knows when trouble will hit, it is very important to make sure you have taken the time to formalize your wishes and made plans for the future. In day-to-day life, it's easy to push that back and wait for what seems like a more opportune time, but as Kennedy's death shows, tomorrow always comes, sometimes when you least expect it.
Without a doubt, you may have reasons for putting off your estate planning; the expense, the time, uncertainty as to how the whole thing works. But you might be surprised at what you can learn just from an initial consultation with an estate planning attorney. Perhaps it won't cost as much as you feared, or maybe it isn't nearly the time commitment you thought. Either way, it's at least worth a phone call.
Source: The Washington Post, "Family and friends gather in NY for funeral of Mary Kennedy, estranged wife of RFK Jr.," May 19, 2012
]]>The New York company that published Archie comics has been in a tough spot ever since its two founders died. Its present condition is a good example of why impartial estate planning advice is necessary and how it can prevent serious problems developing after you've gone.
]]> Basically, the problem is that the two founders left the company to two "co-chief executives" who not only have very divergent visions for where the company should go, but also dislike each other personally. As such, the company has been mired in their infighting to the point where one of them has been banned from headquarters until a judge can sort out all their lawsuits against each other. Serious accusations, such as employment discrimination and harassment, have been thrown around in this fight.The lesson here is that if you seek the advice of an estate planning attorney (i.e. a neutral party), he or she can determine whether your business succession plans make sense. You may have sentimental or personal reasons for wanting to leave your business to your son and daughter, for example, but an attorney can tell you if that does not make sense because they likely won't be able to manage the company well together.
Source: The New York Times, "The Battle for a Comic-Book Empire That Archie Built," Robin Finn, April 13, 2012
]]>However, it was recently revealed that she did not have a will. Young people in Buffalo, even if they do not have money or a large estate like Winehouse did, can certainly take a lesson in estate planning from her.
]]> Most people think estate planning is something for only the elderly. However, people of all ages will benefit from having even a simple will because, if one dies without a will, state law decides who gets what, not you.In the case of Winehouse, she had considerable assets: Her estate has been valued at about $4.7 million. Because she died intestate (without a will), her wishes for the distribution of her assets are not known. This situation can often mean family fighting in probate court.
Winehouse married and divorced Blake Fiedler-Civil and, by some accounts, still loved him. Would she have wanted some of her estate to pass to him? Also, did Winehouse want her older brother Alex to inherit anything? For this case, it doesn't matter: She had no will, so we'll never know. According to law, her parents inherit everything. (Winehouse died in Britain and although that country has different laws than the U.S., both have a default estate plan for people who die intestate)
Everyone from 20 years old to 90, take note: If you die in New York, state law will decide how your estate will be divided. In some cases, this will be in line with your wishes, but what if it is not? Wouldn't you like to have control over who inherits your precious things and cherished mementos, even if they don't add up to as much as Winehouse's?
In all honesty, meeting with an experienced estate planning attorney and having your wishes for your property formally memorialized may not be. Estate planning is even more important if you have a business, many assets and children. A will is a great start to making sure your wishes are know and carried out after you are gone.
Source: Forbes, "Amy Winehouse Didn't Have a Will After All, But Did Have Millions," Danielle and Andy Mayoras, March 28, 2012
]]>Without further ado:
]]> Having more than one will: If you have more than one will in existence when you died, courts will usually probate your recent will (to "probate" a will means supervising the carrying out of its terms). The justification is that your most current will is the one that reflects your most recent wishes. However, if your will is not properly created, it may not be evident which of your multiple wills was the first. Also, having more than one will makes it easier to argue that your newest will was produced when you were under duress or undue influence and that's a whole mess of complications you would rather avoid.Unclear references to assets: When you are leaving something to someone in your will, be absolutely certain it is crystal-clear what you are giving away. In fact, it's hard to go overboard on this. If, for instance, you were to say, "the contents of my savings account" and you had more than one, it would take a lot of time, energy, money and frustration to figure out which one you were talking about. Save all the turmoil by being exact from the get-go.
Ambiguous beneficiary: Leaving something "to my son" is not a good idea. You may have had only one son when you chose that phrase for naming your beneficiary, but what if you had another son afterwards and then forgot to update your beneficiary designation? You'd put both of yours son through the hassle of going to court to find out what you meant.
Of course, a good estate planning attorney will not let you create a document that isn't sufficiently clear, but it is important that you understand why an imprecise estate planning document is bad news.
Source: The Business Review, "10 Tips: Avoiding common estate planning mistakes," Barbara Pickney, April 10, 2012
]]>A conservator is a person who is appointed to manage the affairs of another because that person cannot do it him or herself. It is a commonly used estate planning tool and is usually applied when a person is incapacitated by age or a medical emergency.
]]> Spears was placed under a conservatorship in 2008 when she went through a very public mental breakdown. Her father, Jamie, has been her conservator since then.In the following four years, Spears seems to have recovered and her career has rebounded. Some people are suspicious because Spears has demonstrated that she has the legal capacity to enter contracts for endorsements and appearances, but has used the conservatorship to claim that she does not have the legal capacity to testify in lawsuits in which she is being sued. To some, that smacks of cherry-picking which elements of a conservatorship to enforce.
Now, Spears' fiancée, Jason Trawick, has petitioned to become her co-conservator. In a way, this makes sense because as her spouse, he is in the best position to know Spears well and to have her best interests at heart. But questions still remain as to why Spears has made no apparent effort to regain control over her own life and why she still needs Trawick and her father to handle her affairs.
Source: E! Online, "Britney Spears' Conservatorship: Could Adding Fiance to the Deal Put More Control in Her Hands?" Baker Machado, Claudia Rosenbaum and Natalie Finn, April 18, 2012
]]>The first and perhaps most important estate planning consideration to make is whom to appoint as your power of attorney. A power of attorney is a person who will make legal decision for you in the event that you cannot make them yourself. For example, if your mother had dementia and eventually lacked capacity to make legal decisions, whomever she appointed as a power of attorney would make those decisions for her.
]]> Buffalo readers should also consider living wills and healthcare proxies. These documents specify your medical priorities and will be turned to if something happens and you cannot express your own wishes.Finally, you might also want to consider a living trust and naming yourself as the beneficiary. That way, if you are incapacitated, the trust administer can disburse the trust's resources for your benefit and in accord with your wishes, since you cannot do this yourself.
These are just a few of the things to consider. For a more complete run-down of everything you will need to address, you would want to speak to a local estate planning attorney.
Source: Forbes, "Mike Wallace Death Underlines Need To Prepare Financially For Risk Of Dementia," Deborah L. Jacobs, April 8, 2012
]]>This idea of a "death tax" on a person's estate really incenses people, so many states across the country have been given some thought to changing the way they tax estates and/or bequests. Indiana recently changed its tax structure in this regard and Oregon, Nebraska and Ohio are considering following suit.
]]> Now, the chances that you can craft an estate plan so that you will not pay a dime in taxes are pretty slim (what were those two things Benjamin Franklin said about being certain? Oh, yes. Death and taxes). However, if you spend a little time with a New York attorney who practices estate planning, chances are good that the two of you can come up with an estate plan that meets your needs and does not pay more than necessary in taxes.Taxes may be a bitter pill to swallow, but acting like they do not exist will not get you anywhere. Instead, it's better to be savvy about it and to find out how you can play by the rules and still come out ahead.
Source: Forbes, "Another State Death Tax Kicks The Bucket, Will Others Fall?" Ashlea Ebeling, March 20, 2012
]]>Snyder died in 1994. We aren't sure why his collection of photographs and mementos is being sold now, but it is likely to attract a hefty sum when it is auctioned off. Snyder is also selling the copyrights to the photos, meaning that whomever buys them is also buying the rights to distribute and publicize them and is not just buying the individual physical object. Since Monroe memorabilia has only increased in value over time, acquiring the copyrights to these pictures is likely going to be seen as a very good investment.
]]> There is also a secondary estate planning lessons to be learned here. We cannot tell from news coverage of the upcoming sale whether Snyder ever wanted his collection to be sold. If he did not, he should have made explicit plans for the collection (i.e. donated it to a museum) or otherwise worked carefully with his estate planning attorney to make sure that his collection was not treated in a way he did not like. What Buffalo readers should take from that is it is very important to be specific and explicit when making estate plans. After all, you will not be around to clarify anything, so it is best to be as clear as possible in the first place.Source: Entertainment Today, "Never-before-seen Marilyn Monroe photos up for auction," Randee Dawn, March 16, 2012
]]>The story concerns an estate planning scandal involving an heiress named Gina Reinhart, who inherited her father's vast mining fortune. Although Reinhart inherited the wealth herself, she has said she does not want to leave any money to her children because they do not have the life experience, education or common sense to know what to do with large amounts of money. (Her children have sued Reinhart over her decision and the case is currently working its way through the Australian courts.)
]]> Reinhart is not the only vastly wealthy person to express doubts about leaving money to heirs. Warren Buffett, for example, has said that he does not plan to leave much for his children because he wants them to earn their money. Bill Gates has said he plans to give most of his money away to a charity rather than leaving it all for his daughter.Why this matters to you is that many people have doubts about whether their presumptive heirs (called "heirs apparent") are fit to receive a bequest. It's not at all uncommon for, say, a parent to believe that her son is not a good choice to receive lots of money because of a drug addiction, irresponsibility, a greedy spouse or some other such disqualifier. It happens all the time.
Working with an estate planning attorney can help you come up with a way to leave a bequest to an heir apparent but still maintain a measure of control (one way would be a trust, for example.) Or, if you decide, you do not have to leave anything to your heirs apparent and can talk with your attorney about what to do if your heirs apparent contest the will. Overall, you should know that you have a lot of freedom in this area, but it may be necessary to take preventive steps in case people disagree with what you have decided to do with your assets.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, "Billionaire Says Her Kids Aren't Fit for Inheritance," Robert Frank, March 14, 2012
]]>First, a conservator is a person who is appointed to manage the assets of another person because that person is incompetent to do it on his or her own. (A conservatorship is not the same thing as a guardianship. In a guardianship, the guardian manages the subject's non-financial affairs, like living arrangements. However, a guardian and a conservator can be and often are the same person).
]]> In Spears' case, her father Jamie was appointed her conservator in 2008 when she was going through her much-publicized meltdown. At that time, the claim was that Britney Spears had become mentally incompetent and it was necessary for Jamie Spears to step in.Flash forward to 2012 and it seems Britney is doing quite well. Her albums are selling again and companies once again want to hire her as a spokesperson. She is also rumored to be in talks to join the television program "The X Factor" as a judge. However, Jamie Spears is still her conservator. How can someone who is incompetent be such a savvy businessperson?
The question takes on added significance because Spears is currently facing three unrelated lawsuits and in each one, Jamie Spears has said that his daughter cannot testify under oath because she is incompetent. Naturally, that hampers the plaintiffs' ability to mount successful claims.
Clearly, there is a disconnect here -- how can Spears be competent enough to meet the obligations of being a very successful entertainment career, but be incompetent to testify under oath? It certainly appears as though Jamie Spears is picking and choosing which aspects of a conservatorship he wants to apply and, of course, is only sticking with the advantageous ones.
Source: Forbes, "Oops!...Britney Spears' Conservator Did It Again," Danielle and Andy Mayoras, March 12, 2012
]]>Houston left the entirety of her estate to her daughter, 19-year-old Bobbi Kristina. But she did not give it to her all at once. Rather, Houston opted to put all of her money in a trust that Bobbi Kristina will not be able to access at all until she turns 21. Then, more more will be made available to her when she turns 25. The balance will be an option when Bobbi Kristina turns 30.
]]> This trust arrangement is becoming something of a trend in estate planning. Oftentimes in the past, the assets of a trust were made available to beneficiaries when they reached 18 or 21. However, it eventually became clear that in many cases, it was not a good idea to give so much money to someone who is so young. That is why many people have begun to stagger the disbursements or else make the trust funds available when the recipient is older, like 25 or 30.If you have been thinking about placing property in a trust, you will want to make sure you and your estate planning attorney discuss when might be a good time to make the property available to its recipient or recipients and how you would like those disbursements to be made. Trusts may be more customizable than you realize and there is a good chance your attorney can help you achieve your objectives.
Source: Los Angeles Times, "Whitney Houston's will: Bobbi Kristina is the heiress," Christie D'Zurilla, March 7, 2012
]]>Besides being a good movie, though, "The Descendants" might be worth seeing because it actually contains an estate planning lesson. We don't mean "lesson" in the sense that you should do exactly what Clooney's character does, but rather a lesson in the sense that everyone will probably have to make a decision similar to the one Clooney's character makes in the film at some point in their lives.
]]> The main storyline of the movie revolves around Clooney's character being thrown into crisis by a boating accident that leaves his wife in a coma. With her out of commission, he has to re-connect with his two daughters, who are 17 and 10, and re-assess where he is going with his life.The secondary storyline is where the estate planning lesson lies. Clooney's character, who lives in Hawaii, has inherited a valuable amount of real estate on the island of Kauai, which is held for him in trust. Over the course of the movie, he struggles to decide whether to sell the land or to keep it because it's an important family heirloom.
Now, you probably do not have to decide what you are going to do with valuable Hawaiian real estate. But you may have an important piece of property -- be it real estate, a family heirloom or cash - that you will need to decide what to do with. Estate planning attorneys can likely help you with whatever objective you choose, but they cannot do anything until you have decided what you want to have done. Naturally, they can offer you counsel, but in the end, the decision is up to you.
Source: Forbes, "George Clooney Makes Estate Planning Sexy," Deborah L. Jacobs, Feb. 23, 2012
]]>Even so, it would be understandable if a Buffalo resident were wary about leaving a large gift in a will. After all, he or she wouldn't be there to personally ensure that money would be spent as he or she planned. The good news is, if you want to leave a gift to an organization or cause, you can dictate what that gift will be used for (as long as it isn't for an illegal purpose or egregiously against public policy).
]]> Take a gift made by the late "Columbo" star Peter Falk, for example. Falk, who was 83 when he passed away last June left $3 million to the University of California, Los Angeles. He explicitly stated he wanted the money to be used to provide scholarships to students, so UCLA obliged and established a scholarship fund in his and his wife's name.Thus, if you attach strings to your gift (so to speak) and an organization accepts that gift knowing about the strings, there is a good chance your money won't be used for any other purpose. Naturally, it is probably best to work closely with an attorney who is familiar with estate planning to make sure you carry this off successfully.
Source: The Washington Post Entertainment, "Former 'Columbo' star Peter Falk bequeaths $3 million to UCLA to provide student scholarships," Feb. 21, 2012
]]>But now that Houston is no longer with us, where will all the money from those sales go, since she is not here to receive it?
]]> The answer is that any income she makes from the sale of her music and movies will be rolled into her estate. What will happen to it after that, though, is not yet known because we are not sure what, if any, estate plans Houston made.It is not uncommon for the estate of an iconic celebrity to keep making money after that celebrity has died. The estates of James Dean, Audrey Hepburn, Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe keep making money even though all those stars died decades ago, and it will likely be a similar story with the estate of recently deceased celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson.
It isn't just the estates of celebrities that keep earning after a person has died. If you have an ownership stake in a business, for example, that asset could continue to earn revenue or incur losses even after you die. This is why it is crucial that you have an attorney help you identify your assets and develop a plan for what will happen to them after you have passed on.
Source: The Washington Post, "Whitney Houston's death sparks outpouring that will benefit estate though questions remain," Feb. 14, 2012
]]>Since they are not people, pets cannot inherit anything directly. That means if you were to leave Fluffy, say, $50,000 in your will, a court would declare that bequest invalid.
]]> One option that pet owners have is to create a pet trust. A pet trust is basically a trust set up to provide for the benefit and welfare of an animal. For the most part, it isn't any different than any other trust -- a trustee is identified, assets are transferred to the trust and the trustee is instructed to use the funds in a certain manner (in this case, for the animal's well-being.)Pet trusts may be a better way to provide for a pet after you have gone than other estate planning means. Simply asking a friend or relative to take a pet carries no legal obligation, of course, and as we said, wills cannot be used to transfer property to pets.
Pet trusts fly here in New York, but they are not valid in other states, like Minnesota, Vermont and West Virginia. That pet trusts work in some places and not others speaks to the fact that our society has not quite yet come to consensus on how to best provide for pets after an owner's death.
If you are concerned about what will happen to your pet, it may be a good idea to speak to an attorney about the matter so you can become better informed about your options.
Source: The New York Times, "The Pet Problem," Alyson Martin and Nushin Rashidian, Feb. 3, 2012
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