General Estate Planning:

Below are links to information relevant to my law practice regarding estate planning in general.

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Double Check all Beneficiary Designations (GetIRSHelp.com)
If you are married to a person who is a participant in a retirement account or plan, you have to protect yourself and your children by paying close attention to several things on this checklist.

Discussing Your Estate Planning With Your Children (Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog - Nov. 13, 2007)
An article discussing whether clients should share their estate plans with their children.

Estate Planning Can Help You Rest (Fresno Bee - Oct. 31, 2007)
About 70% of Americans die without a will or other estate plan, experts say, even though most people say they'd like to save their heirs the time, taxes and costs that can add up when no estate planning has been done.

Estate Planning for Grandpop's Gun (PA Elder Blog - Nov. 11, 2007)
As an estate attorney, how do you handle the planning of an estate, which includes National Firearms Act [NFA] firearms?

Estate Planning for Your Pet
A web site devoted to providing a broad-based information resource for pet owners, and the professionals who assist them, in estate planning for their pets.

FDIC Deposit Insurance Rules for Revocable Trust Accounts Changes (FDIC - 10/8/08)
The FDIC has adopted an interim regulation simplifying the rules for insuring revocable trust accounts - commonly known as payable-on-death accounts and living trust accounts. The new rules are easier to understand and apply, and provide at least as much coverage as the former rules for revocable trust accounts.

Families Rethink Their Estate Plans (Wall Street Journal - 10/10/07)
After flirting with death, the estate tax now looks like it isn't going away anytime soon -- and that's creating headaches for wealthy families and their advisers.

Gifting your House and Living In It, Too (The Wall Street Journal - 10/30/08)
Plunging real-estate values have made it an opportune time for older homeowners to give property to their children, while realizing big savings on gift and estate taxes.

Health & Financial Decisions - Legal Tools for Preserving Your Personal Autonomy (American Bar Assn. Commission on Law and Aging)
You have the right to make choices based upon your own values, beliefs and wishes, even if others disagree with you. Therefore, it is important to state your desires in writing about health and financial decisions when you are capable of clearly expressing your wishes. Click here for the Spanish version.

In re: Howard J. Stoddard Trust (State of Michigan Court of Appeals - Dec. 4, 2007)
Opinion re: probate court's order dividing the trust into three separate trusts to end lengthy litigation.

Intro to Estate and Gift Taxes (IRS - Publication 950)
Revised September 2008

IRAs and Estate Planning: Creative Ways to Address the Tax Challenges (Action Line - Winter 2007)
What prevents the beneficiary from withdrawing the entire balance and walking away, triggering substantial income tax liability?

IRS Issues Revised Form 706 (PA Elder, Estate & Fiduciary Law Blog - Oct. 2007)
Explanation of a revision to the "United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return - Form 706" and accompanying instructions.

Leaving IRAs to Trusts Take Professional Planning (St. Charles County Business Record - Jan. 5, 2008)
While a conduit trust is easier to draft, it doesn't offer the same level of protection from creditors as an accumulation trust.

Living Trust FAQ (NOLO.com)
An introduction to living trusts - a popular way to avoid probate.

Michigan Adopts "Probate Only" Estate Recovery Law (Chalgian & Tripp Elder Law Alert - Oct. 2007)
Info on the "estate recovery" law adopted by the State of Michigan.

New Estate Recovery Law to Impact Michigan Families (Lansing State Journal - Oct. 2007)
During its recent marathon session, the state Legislature passed a law that could have a direct effect on some Michigan seniors and their families.

New FDIC rules for Revocable Trusts (FDIC - 9/30/08)
Pa. attorney Neil E. Hendershot has summarized the new rues nicely: FDIC's Interim Rule for Living Trust Deposits

New to Estate Recovery, Michigan Attorneys Seek Aid (Elder Law Answers - Oct. 15, 2007)
On September 28th, 2007, Michigan became the last state in the nation to pass an estate recovery program required by federal law. Federal Medicaid officials had threatened to cut off $5 billion in annual Medicaid payments if the state was not in compliance by September 30.

Obama's Position on Capital-Gains Tax (The Wall Street Journal - 8/10/08)
Get the facts here from Sen. Obama's economic policy director.

Pension Protection Act of 2006 (Robert S. Keebler - 2006)
Important IRA and Qualified Plan Rules.

Postmortem Strategies to Shift Retirement Plan Assets to the Spouse (Bruce D. Steiner, Attorney - June 2007)
A spouse who is not named the beneficiary of a decedent's qualified plan or IRA may still be able to receive these assets.

Power of Attorney No Good at Bank (BizConnect - 8/8/08)
Question: Why should...durable power of attorney not be honored by the bank?

So, You've Been Appointed Trustee of a Trust? Here are the Do's and Don'ts (Elder Law Associates)
What responsibilities have been thrust upon you and how can you successfully carry them out?

The Structured Settlement Market - Patrick Hindert
A Wiki page that summarizes and continues a learning conversation titled "The Structured Settlement Market" initiated at the 2007 Annual Meeting of the National Association of Settlement Purchasers (NASP) in Washington, D.C. on October 19, 2007.

Trusts and Taxes (GeriLaw blog)
On January 16, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court settled a long-running conflict among federal appeals courts regarding fiduciary income taxes for trusts.

Whose Life Expectancy Is It, Anyway? (Journal of Retirement Planning - July-August 2008)
Determining which trust beneficiaries are countable for required minimum distribution purposes - Michelle Ward explains the complex rules governing IRA accounts in determining the correct life expectancies to use in calculating required minimum distributions.

Wills for a Second Marriage (Wessell Douglass blog - Dec. 25, 2007)
How can you provide for your second spouse while protecting your children?

With Shares Tanking, Think About Gifting (Wall Street Journal - 11/11/08)
The classic tax strategy of giving away stock to family members packs more punch right now.

Growing Old with a Lesbian or Gay Partner (ABA)
The challenge of assisting lesbian and gay couples can be both rewarding and frustrating because there is such a divergence in social attitudes from place to place throughout the country and in legal standards in different practice areas of the law.

Life Planning Can Be Challenging for Same-Gender Couples (Fleming & Curti, PLC - Jan. 28, 2008)
Same gender domestic partners lack the statutory protections of a spouse or blood relative; advance directives, wills and trusts can be used to create and support those rights for your partner.

Specialized Solutions for Domestic Partners (Merrill Lynch)
Domestic partners face unique challenges in creating and implementing a comprehensive long-term plan to address their financial objectives. Although domestic partners may not have the same automatic legal rights and benefits as married couples, with careful planning you and your partner can achieve the lifestyle you envision.

Use of Pooled Trusts for Nonmarital Domestic Partners (Sanford J. Mall, JD, CELA.) (NAELA article)
For a heterosexual couple, spousal impoverishment protections protect the community spouse. These same protections do not exist for unmarried domestic partners.

Beyond Structured Settlements - Patrick Hindert
Collaborative thinking and commentary about how the Internet impacts structured settlements, settlement planning and special needs planning.

Get IRS Help.com
A blog by tax attorney Darrin T. Mish focusing on solving tax problems.

Michigan Probate Litigation and Will Contests (Barron, Rosenberg, Mayoras & Mayoras, PC)
A Michigan law firm who has represented individuals, fiduciaries and businesses in probate litigation since 1970.

Sylvester Law Firm - Patrick Sylvester
An estate planning and probate lawyer representing clients in Illinois, Wisconsin and Florida.

Wachbrit & Associates, PC - Diedre Wachbrit blog
A California attorney specializing in estate planning, asset protection and special needs.

Wants, Wishes and Wills - Wynne A. Whitman, Esq. and Shawn D. Glisson, M.D.
Encourages readers to tackle issues surrounding disease and death in an easy-to-understand, practical, and manageable way.