A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that in regions of the U.S. that tend to spend the most on end-of-life care, patients who have "advance directives" cost Medicare about $5,600 less per person. (Advance directives allow patients to communicate their end-of-life wishes if they are unable to do so themselves.) These patients' quality of life also appeared to be better; they were more likely to receive hospice care and to be at home when they died. But the differences in spending and care did not hold up in regions of the country with low-…
Is having an out-of-date will better than having no will at all? While wills do not have expiration dates, certain changes can render them useless. When this happens, having an out-of-date will can be the same as having no will at all. It is important to review your will periodically to ensure it still does what you want. The following are five ways your will can become out-of-date: Your beneficiaries have died. What happens if your will leaves your estate to your two siblings, but both siblings die before you? If your beneficiaries predecease you, your will is still technically…
A mistake in elder-law estate planning is failure to regularly review the plan. At a minimum, each client's estate plan should be reviewed every three years to determine whether changes in the client's personal life, such as health, assets or family history (births, deaths, marriages, divorces, etc.) might require changes to the plan. Similarly, changes in the law may lead to changes in the plan. It is unrealistic to expect a plan established today to be effective 10, 20, 30 or more years in the future. Over time, clients may want to change their backup trustees or plan of distribution….
If you don’t want to trouble yourself with what entity should pay what bill or accept what deposit, etc., let that piece be handled by your professionals, also, but again in an integrated manner. There has to be somebody who cares what account is used, because that is their job. And now for an understatement: “Family Limited Partnerships Require Good Planning and Execution.” If you’re a fan of business law horror stories, then this recent article by Peter Reilly at Forbes and the case of Estate of Paul H. Liljestrand v. Commissioner should be both entertaining and instructive. The subject…
It doesn’t take an experienced estate planner to say so, but “money is the root of all evil.” Unfortunately money bears with it the potential for good and bad ends alike. An experienced estate planner can help your loved ones lean to the positive when it comes to the inheritance you leave them. When it comes to trust money, and inheritances in general, you need to find a balance that will help your children become the people you know they can be. For some solid tips, check out this article and the 5 trust fund rules to help children. The…
So, you’ve created a trust to protect your loved ones. Did you name the right person as trustee? Likewise, perhaps you’ve just been asked to serve as trustee without a firm appreciation for what that means, or perhaps you’ve just figured it out. Question: Should the trust have a professional trustee? Whether you’re parent who’s set up a trust or you’re a named trustee, Special Needs Answers recently offered a couple of tests to determine if the trust has the right trustee and if a professional may be in order. Their advice, as you would imagine, is especially poignant in…
A DIY attitude can get you a lot of places, after all, its part and parcel to the entrepreneurial spirit. Of course, anyone who’s jury-rigged a project also knows that a DIY attitude doesn’t always translate into a successful end result. In the end, you either learn from your mistakes for the next project or else hire a professional to do it right the first time. What about your Last Will and Testament? What are the dangers of a “DIY Last Will”? Forbes recently ran an article on the possible pitfalls of a DIY will and the reasons to consider…
Across the board, valuation matters. Contemporaneous appraisals can be worth a lot. Retrospective appraisals — done after the fact and purporting to express value as of a date in the past — are never as persuasive as appraisals done contemporaneously. Oftentimes, proper planning is about the ability to offer proper proof. That’s my primary take-away lesson from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the case of Estate of Petter v. Commissioner, as assessed in a recent Forbes article. As many of you appreciate, when giving away assets it is important to get the most bang for your buck and…
To follow in [Reverend Crummey’s] footsteps, set up a trust and have it buy a life insurance policy on your life. Someday when you die, the trust will receive the insurance proceeds and pay them out to the beneficiaries listed in your trust. When you’re looking to pass on significant assets, a trust is a powerful tool. Quality is important. While a “crummy” trust won’t cut it, a “Crummey” trust just might do the trick. Poor puns like this and more abound in a recent Forbes article about “Crummey trusts” I thought you might enjoy. A “Crummey trust” – so…
Frederick, MD 
301-663-9230
