Do I Need a Prenuptial Agreement?
Love Actually: Planning Considerations for Marriage, Divorce, Cohabitation, the Death of a Spouse, and More
Mamma Mia!: Common Estate Planning Issues for Blended Families
How Much an Arizona Divorce Will Cost
DE Talk | Resiliency & Determination: The Military Spouse Employee Makeup
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 7 - Invisible Scars: The Impact of Coercive Control on Children
DE Under 3: An Explanation of the Current Federal Budget Bill Confusion
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 5 - Parallel Proceedings: The Intersection of Criminal Law and Family Law
DE Under 3: U.S. GAO Report on Military Spouse Employment Focused on Challenges of Part-Time Work
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 2 - Mortgage Mastery: Charting a Financial Course Post-Divorce
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 1 - The Truth Behind Coercive Control
Jewish Divorce Talk: Episode 8 - Narcissism and Parental Alienation Talk
Once Removed Episode 12: SLATs and the Case of McKim vs. McKim
Once Removed Episode 11: Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts, or SLATs
Jewish Divorce Talk: Episode 6 - “Let’s Gett Serious” Talk
Let's Talk About Common Law Marriage
Let's Talk What to Bring to Your First Family Law Appointment
The $6 Million Wedding
Immigration Settlement Clears the Way for Thousands of H-1B and L-1 Spouses to Work in the US
Marriage and Divorce Considerations for Health Care Providers
Speaking about death can be difficult but planning ahead brings peace of mind and protects loved ones from unnecessary stress. Having a professionally drafted will ensures your wishes are followed and your estate is handled...more
Losing a loved one unexpectedly is devastating, particularly when their death results from someone else’s negligence or wrongful actions. Financial hardships, including medical bills, funeral expenses, and lost income, often...more
There are three aspects of the Florida Homestead law. One is the “save our homes” exemption. The save our homes exemption limits how much the value of the homestead can be increased from year to year for purposes of assessing...more
A recent case by the Tennessee Court of Appeals highlights the importance of changing one’s insurance and retirement policy beneficiaries after divorce. This is true no matter what the divorce documents say and no matter what...more
The Restatement (Third) of Trusts, specifically §104, lists four general areas in which the beneficiary’s actions may lead to an assumption of internal liability to the trust estate: (1) A loan or advance to the beneficiary...more
Welcome to The Verdict: Estate Planning Through Film. I'm Hons Yung, and today I’m joined by Farella Senior Associate Taylor Porter to discuss the movie Mamma Mia! With ABBA's blend of pop, rock, and disco setting the tone,...more
While second marriages represent a fresh start and an exciting journey, consider the potential financial and legal outcomes before you re-tie the knot. A prenuptial agreement (prenup), a contract that outlines both spouses’...more
The recent death of legendary actor, Gene Hackman, age 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa, age 65, has brought attention to the complexities surrounding their estate and illustrates the need for proper estate planning. At his...more
Despite an intention to add a spouse or domestic partner to their Will, at times a decedent may neglect to do so prior to his/her death. Under such circumstances, however, a surviving spouse or domestic partner may be...more
Blending families often introduce unique dynamics. In addition to the day-to-day challenges and opportunities that blended families create, there is also careful planning to consider when creating or updating an estate plan....more
When the Supreme Court made its landmark decision in Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015, same-sex couples across the country gained the right to marry. But with recent shifts in the legal landscape, such as the overturning of Roe...more
A new Supreme Court ruling overturns lower courts’ rulings and regulates the application of the “successive heirs” provision of the Succession Law, in instances when a surviving spouse who inherited property by virtue of a...more
People often assume that if their estate isn’t taxable, they don’t need to have an estate plan. In 2024, a Massachusetts estate tax return must be filed if the value of the deceased person’s gross estate exceeds $2 million. A...more
Certain life events demand that estate planners work with client testators to adjust their estate plans. Divorce and remarriage are at the top of that list. When matrimony devolves into acrimony – setting the stage for...more
Generally, under New York EPTL 5-1.1-A, if a decedent is survived by a spouse, a right of election is given to the surviving spouse to take a share of the decedent's estate “equal to the greater of (i) fifty thousand dollars...more
The question of when a lawsuit can be commenced in Ontario seems pretty straightforward – in general, a plaintiff has two years from the date when the basis for a claim is (or should have been) discovered. It sounds simple...more
In Bass v. Bogle, settlors, husband and wife, created a trust that owned the majority interest in a closely-held business, and they had two children. No. 03-23-00319-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 5034 (Tex. App.—Austin July 18,...more
Today’s federal estate and gift tax laws may be remembered as the most generous to wealthy families since the Great Depression. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) doubled the federal estate, gift, and generation skipping...more
Married couples often have wills naming one another as their primary beneficiary. People also often name their spouse as beneficiary of retirement accounts and life insurance policies. Upon commencing a divorce action,...more
As a bit of background, there is a distinction between probate assets and non-probate assets. Probate assets are distributed according to your will during a probate administration whereas non-probate assets are distributed...more
The landscape of marriage in the United States has transformed significantly, particularly for same-sex couples, following pivotal legal battles that sought to recognize their right to marry. Understanding the nuances of...more
Earlier today I happened upon a really important article accenting the dangers of what often starts as an entirely innocent transaction. A site called the Street.com publishes a variety of articles about retirement and...more
What is known as the IRS survivor’s penalty, and is there anything that can be done to provide for a surviving spouse as we age? The “survivor’s penalty” is the likelihood that a surviving spouse will face higher federal and...more
Let's be honest. Legal documents are not written in anyone's love language. On Valentines Day, we undoubtedly would prefer to exchange thoughtful presents, enjoy an intimate meal with our significant other, or blush at the...more
You may have heard of Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATS) lately, especially if you have been thinking about using your federal estate and gift tax exemption before the current higher exemption amount of $13.61 million is...more