What Your Lawyer May Not Tell You about Your Family's Will : A Guide to Preventing the Common Pitfalls That Can Lead to Family Fights

by Whitehouse, Kaja

• ISBN13: 9780446695459
• ISBN10: 0446695459
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-03-24
• Publisher: Grand Central Pub

Summary

Estate planning is about caring for loved ones and making sure that hard-earned assets are distributed according to your wishes. A good will can do just that. Now, in WHAT YOUR LAWYER MAY NOT TELL YOU ABOUT PLANNING YOUR FAMILYS WILL, a legal journalist shares the most up-to-date More... laws, benefits, and tips on preparing a will, and helps readers avoid future lawsuits and ugly family disputes by answering important questions like: When is it the right time to make a will? Whats the difference between a will and a trust? How is an estate settled, or a claim against one made? What are the restrictions for changing a will? Who may be excluded from a will? Included? And more.

Table of Contents

How to Use This Book	xv
PART I: The Basics
The Importance of Planning: When You Don't Plan, You Let the Courts Decide	5	(6)
Who Gets My Money if I Die Without a Plan?
Other Pitfalls of Not Planning
Appointing a Guardian for Your Minor Children
Introducing the Will: The Centerpiece of Any Estate Plan	11	(10)
The Components of a Will
What Makes a Will Legally Binding?
Do I Need a Professional to Draft a Will?
Are There Any Restrictions About What I Can Transfer with a Will?
Can I Leave My Money to Whomever I Want?
Who Will Enforce My Will When I Die?
Planning for Minor Children: Finding a Guardian They Will Respect	21	(16)
Choosing a Guardian
Who Will Provide for Them Financially? Understanding Life Insurance
Who Will Manage the Money I Leave Them? Finding a Custodian
The Importance of Careful Distributions: Unequal Bequests May Be Justified, but Jilted Heirs Will Fight Back	37	(11)
Giving Separate Assets Could Cause Serious Inequities
Forgot About That ``Loan'' to Junior Twenty Years Ago? Nobody Else Has
The Child Who Needs It Most Doesn't Necessarily Deserve It
Should the Child Who Gives You More Get More?
Know What You Own: What Is Your Estate, Anyway?	48	(8)
I Live in a Community Property State---What Do I Own?
I Live in a Common Law Property State---What Do I Own?
What Happens to My Property Rights When I Move?
How Else Can Marriage Impact Ownership?
Disinheritance: If You Must Cut Someone, at Least Cover Your Tracks	56	(7)
Step 1: Know Your Legal Limitations
Step 2: Build Your Case
Your Personal Effects Need a Home, Too: Why Theft Is Often the Unfortunate Solution	63	(12)
Finders Keepers, Losers Weepers
It's Easy: Just Ask Who Wants What
What Nobody Wants Can Land in the Trash
PART II: Advanced Planning
A Will, a Living Trust, or Both?: Breaking Down the Myths of Trusts	75	(11)
Why Have a Living Trust?
Why You Might Not Want a Living Trust
How Does This Trust-Thing Work, Anyhow?
Myths About Living Trusts
I'm Still Confused. Do I Need a Will, a Trust, or Both?
The Truth About Probate: Is It Really So Bad?	86	(11)
What Is This Thing Called Probate?
Look! A Simplified Version
How Can My Estate Qualify for One of These Simplified Procedures?
The Ongoing Trust: Controlling Your Heirs from the Grave	97	(22)
How Trusts Work
Protecting Your Child from Becoming a Lazy Bum
Instilling Your Values in Your Child
Protecting the Inheritance from Bad Investment Decisions
Protecting Your Child's Inheritance from a Spouse
Protecting the Inheritance for the Next Generation
Protecting Your Special-Needs Child
Protecting the Inheritance from Creditors
When It Comes to Control, How Much Is Too Much?
Naming a Trust Protector
Planning for Pets: Legally Speaking, Fido Is Property, Too	119	(10)
What Happens to Your Pet When Your Pet Outlives You?
A Pet Trust or Retirement Home?
Compiling Information About Your Pet and Its Care
Preparing for Incapacity: The Name Terri Schiavo Says It All	129	(18)
Living Wills
Health Care Powers of Attorney
Financial Powers of Attorney
Fight Elder Abuse Before It's Too Late
Unmarried Couples: Not Planning Is Not an Option	147	(7)
What's Different for Unmarried Couples?
Same-Sex Couples Must Grapple with Differing Laws
Taxes: Assuming Your Heirs Won't Be Taxed Is the First Mistake	154	(29)
Calculating Your Risk
Types of Taxes That Can Affect Your Plan
Getting the Most of Your Exemptions and Deductions
PART III: Wrapping Things Up
If Not You, Then Who? A Plan Is Only as Good as the Person in Charge	183	(12)
Choosing an Executor
Choosing a Guardian for Minor Children
Choosing a Health Care Proxy
Choosing an Attorney-in-Fact
Choosing a Trustee of a Living Trust
Choosing a Trustee of an Ongoing Trust
What About Paying a Professional?
Record Keeping: Get Your Records in Order or Some Assets Could Be Lost Forever	195	(8)
What Documents Should You Have Together?
What if You Want to Make Changes?
Controlling the Funeral Arrangements: Your Final Good-bye	203	(10)
Can I Really Have It My Way?
Avoid Getting Ripped Off
Enforcing Your Wishes
Seeking Advice in All the Wrong Places: Why You Don't Want a Real Estate Lawyer to Draft Your Estate Plan	213	(5)
Whom Can You Trust?
Resources to Help You Find Help
Afterword	218	(3)
Appendix 1: Living Wills	221	(2)
Appendix 2: Health Care Proxies	223	(4)
Index	227	(10)
About the Author	237