Mamma Mia!: Common Estate Planning Issues for Blended Families
An Executor’s Guide to Administering an Estate
Interview with Lisa Grayson - Digital Planning Podcast
Inheritance Data - Digital Planning Podcast
When a loved one passes away, the emotional toll of the loss can be compounded by the sudden responsibility of managing the deceased person’s estate—especially if you’ve been named as the executor under a Last Will and...more
Intro. The Uniform Trust Code (UTC) is a mere aggregation of tweaks to the corner of equity jurisprudence that long ago gave birth to and currently stewards the trust relationship, hereinafter “the background trust law.”...more
Celebrity estate disputes often make for dramatic headlines, but the legal challenges they reveal can resonate far beyond the rich and famous. Join Whitney O’Reilly, chair of our Trust & Estates Group, for an insightful...more
Why is the end of the year a good time to consider trust and estate planning for business owners? Do you own real property or have other investments outside your business interests? Have you given any thought to what would...more
Once you have taken the essential step in formulating your estate plan, you must name an executor of your Will. Whom should you designate for this significant role, and what is expected of them?...more
People often assume that if their estate isn’t taxable, they don’t need to have an estate plan. In 2023, a Massachusetts estate tax return must be filed if the value of the deceased person’s gross estate exceeds $1 million. A...more
Losing a family member or friend is a difficult situation for everyone. In 1969, the Swiss-American psychiatrist Elizabeth Kübler-Ross wrote in her book “On Death and Dying,” that grief could be divided into five stages:...more
The term “probate” is one you may have heard and might associate with negative connotations, but you don’t fully understand what it is. For some, the term conjures images of lengthy delays waiting for wealth to be transferred...more
Married couples have a special way to jointly own property in some states that has advantages over regular joint ownership. If you are married and own property jointly, you should make sure you have the right form of...more
California’s probate process aims to expeditiously identify and resolve the claims of creditors against decedents. Creditors who are unsophisticated, or who simply do not learn of the decedent’s passing, may find themselves...more
When you die, your debts do not expire with you. Most debt still needs to be paid off, if possible. However, who is responsible for paying the debt depends on the type of debt, and some assets are protected from being used...more
Probate. The word itself is enough to strike fear into the hearts of elderly individuals and their loved ones. It conjures images of lengthy delays waiting for wealth to be transferred and bitter disputes among family...more
First, in Calhoun v. Rawlins, No. 17-P-40, 2018 WL 3131023 (Mass. App. Ct. June 27, 2018), the Appeals Court held that creditors could access a spendthrift trust that was created for a beneficiary with cognitive impairments...more
In March 2018, Governor Reynolds signed HF 2125 into law, with effective date, July 1, 2018. This law increases the limit of personal property that can be transferred after death using an affidavit....more
2017 was a significant year for Murtha Cullina’s appellate practice group. The firm was recognized by the Connecticut Law Tribune as its "Appellate Litigation Department of the Year." 2017 also marked two anniversary dates of...more
In In re Estate of Chapman, Peoples Bank (the Bank) conducted a non-judicial foreclosure sale of secured real estate owned by an estate and then sued the administrator of the estate in district court due to a deficiency...more
On October 1, 2015 the Florida Supreme Court held in Jones v. Golden that if a creditor of a probate estate is reasonably ascertainable and they never received a copy of the notice to creditors from the personal...more
In re Estate of House, 2014 Wash. App. LEXIS 3006 (Wash. Ct. App. 2014) - A release waiving any and all claims that the parties may have or may acquire, bars recovery for unknown claims existing at the time the release...more