Writing Your Tulsa Estate Planning Blog

Even great amounts of family wealth, can easily be lost by future generations who do not preserve and add to it as the original wealth generator did.

James Jewett Stillman’s greatest lasting achievement was running the bank that eventually grew into Citigroup. However, he had another legacy.

Stillman also had a large and valuable collection of art and an estate he wanted to be preserved for use by the public. If everything had gone according to plan, the art and the estate would have been preserved for generations.

However, everything did not go according to plan.

His heirs are now trying to auction off the art, because they need the money to save the estate, as Bloomberg reports in “New York Banking Royalty’s Heirs Are Unloading Art to Save the Family Estate.”

The source of the problem, in this case, appears to be that trustees who were charged with running the estate have squandered millions of dollars over the years. The estate’s funds have run so low, that the heirs have no choice but to sell something. Therefore, they have chosen to sell the art.

The immediate lesson to be learned? It is very important to choose trustees carefully and to make sure that trust documents are carefully crafted to make squandering money difficult.

However, there is also a more important lesson that wealth does not last forever, unless it is properly maintained. Had it not been the trustees who squandered the wealth in this case, it might have been the future heirs.

Reference: Bloomberg (April 4, 2017) “New York Banking Royalty’s Heirs Are Unloading Art to Save the Family Estate.”

New parents have many possible things to worry about. One of them does not need to be what will happen to their newborn, should anything happen to them.

First-time parents are stereotypically known to be a nervous group. That is understandable. Bringing a new life into the world that you are responsible for, is a daunting task for even the most financially secure and emotionally stable people.

It is not easy being a parent and it is anything but cheap. Parenting a child costs a lot of money in today’s world. It requires careful planning.

Recently, Wealth Management outlined some financial planning advice for new parents in “Six Financial Planning Steps for Expecting Parents.”

All of the steps listed in the article are important and worthy of consideration for new parents. However, the last one is of particular importance, because it is the one that is most often forgotten.

New parents need to get estate plans.

It is through estate planning that parents can prepare for the worst case scenario if something happens to them, the parents, before their children reach adulthood.

It is in estate planning that guardians are nominated for minor children.

It is also through estate planning that financial arrangements are made to make sure that minor children have the resources needed for their care, if something happens to the parents.

If you are expecting a child, make sure you do not neglect to see an estate planning attorney so you do not have to worry about what will happen to your child, if something happens to you.

Reference: Wealth Management (March 31, 2017) “Six Financial Planning Steps for Expecting Parents.”

Advancements in technology often require that legal rules be put in place to account for the advancements. When it comes to in vitro fertilization, the law is still adapting, as a case from Spain illustrates.

Before undergoing cancer treatment that could render him infertile, a Spanish man decided to freeze his sperm for possible later use by his partner. After the treatment, the couple started the process of in vitro fertilization but did not complete it, since his condition got worse and he passed away.

The day before he passed away the pair were married.

After his death, the Spanish woman unsuccessfully attempted in vitro fertilization four times. The clinic refused her a fifth attempt without a court order.

It seems that Spanish law only allows genetic material to be used for 12 months after a person has passed away, according to FOX News in “Judge allows woman to undergo in vitro fertilization with dead husband’s sperm.”

The interesting aspect of this case is that the government chose not to argue in court on legal grounds that the woman should not be able use the sperm. Instead, the government argued on the moral grounds that it was impossible to know whether the man would still want the child or even if he would still want to be married to the woman, if he were still alive.

The government took the position that the man could not consent to having a child, but the judge was not persuaded and ruled in favor of the woman.

Similar cases are expected to appear with greater frequency and present a challenge to current estate law.

It is not clear how estates that are already settled, will be able to handle a child born years after the deceased passed away.

Reference: FOX News (March 23, 2017) “Judge allows woman to undergo in vitro fertilization with dead husband’s sperm.”

Most Americans pass away still owing some debt. The debt does not merely die with them. It is more complicated than that.

There is a common belief that any debt a person has, dies with him or her. In a sense that is true, but it is also false depending on the type and the amount of debt.

It is important to understand the dynamics of debt and dying, because 73% percent of Americans pass away with debt. The average amount of debt at death is approximately $62,000 according to FOX Business in “Americans Are Dying with an Average of $62K of Debt.”

The only type of debt that completely disappears when the debtor passes away is federal student loans.

However, even then the proper paperwork must be filed. The same situation is not necessarily true with other types of student loans.

Other types of debt must be paid by the estate, before any assets are distributed to heirs.

Thus, if a person passes away owing $100,000 and having assets of $150,000, then the estate must pay the debt and only the remaining $50,000 can be inherited by heirs.

If the estate does not have enough assets to cover the full amount of the debt, then heirs are not responsible to pay it. However, there are exceptions. For example, if the estate contains a home, then the value of that home might be used to pay the debt even if other people are living in it. As a result, the heirs might need to pay the debt to stay in the home.

The issue of debt and death can get very complex. If you have any questions, it is a good idea to talk to an estate planning attorney who can help you manage what will happen to any debt you have when you pass away.

Reference: FOX Business (March 21, 2017) “Americans Are Dying with an Average of $62K of Debt.”

Experts predict that in a few years, the technology will be good enough that vehicles will not need human assistance to operate. One of the groups that could benefit the most from this is the elderly.

One of the most dreaded conversations for children with elderly parents, is telling their parents that it is time to give up driving. For the elderly, the loss of the ability to drive is symbolic of a loss of self-reliance, since it makes it much more difficult to get around.

Elderly people who have always been able to get in their vehicles and drive themselves anywhere they want, naturally resent not being able to do so. They also often fear that if they call someone to help them, then they are being a burden.

Nevertheless, at some point people do lose the ability to drive safely. Therefore, children must have the conversation with their elderly parents no matter how much everyone involved dreads the prospect.

Soon, however, it may no longer be necessary according to The New York Times in “Self-Driving Cars Could Be Boon for Aged, After Initial Hurdles.”

Automakers and technology companies are in a race to develop cars that can drive themselves. These autonomous vehicles would be able to take passengers where they want to go more safely than human drivers, according to advocates.

If the elderly were to use self-driving cars, then they would no longer need to lose their mobility when they are no longer able to drive. Some believe that these vehicles could be available in as little as five years.

There are still legal issues that need to be considered for elder law advocates. Lawmakers currently appear reluctant to allow autonomous vehicles that are not overseen by a human capable of taking control safely.

Reference: The New York Times (March 23, 2017) “Self-Driving Cars Could Be Boon for Aged, After Initial Hurdles.”

While you are busy doing your taxes this year, it is also a good time to think about getting an estate plan.

Every year at about this time, Americans breathe a big sigh of relief when they seal their tax returns and send them off to the IRS or hit “send” to file electronically. The sigh is even bigger, if the envelope did not include a check written to the government and the tax filer can expect to receive a refund in the next couple of months.

No one likes doing their own taxes.

When they are finally done, the last thing that most people want to do is to deal with more financial issues. However, it is a good idea to do one more thing, as CTV News points out in “The mistakes of not having a will.”

When you finish doing your taxes, you should get an estate plan or update your plan, if you already have one.

To do your taxes, you had to get out many of your financial documents. You have also been thinking about how much money you have and where it is all located. Doing those things is one of the first steps to getting an estate plan.

You could put all of your financial documents away and think about other things. However, if you later decided to do estate planning, you will have to start all over again.

Why not just go ahead and get an estate plan now, while things are still on your mind?

Reference: CTV News (March 21, 2017) “The mistakes of not having a will.”

If you feel overwhelmed about planning your estate, it might be helpful to remember what is at the core of estate planning. It is a way to transfer assets.

Estate planning can be and do many different things. It can provide for the care of minor children. It can be a way to let people know that you love them. It can create a charitable legacy.

In fact, there are so many things estate planning can be and do that may people get overwhelmed thinking about all of them. As a result, they do not create estate plans.

At its core, however, estate planning is not that complicated. Estate planning can be as simple as transferring your assets after death.

As the Times Herald-Record explains in “Transferring assets upon death,” there are four main ways to do that, including:

•Wills – In a will you state who should get your assets and appoint someone to be in charge of making sure that your wishes are carried out. Wills have to be approved by a probate court.

•Joint Ownership – If you have assets in joint ownership with another person, then by law when you pass away the joint owner becomes the sole owner of the asset.

•Beneficiary Designations – For life insurance policies, retirement accounts and savings accounts, you name a specific beneficiary to receive the assets after you pass away. A court does not need to approve the designation.

•Trusts – With a trust, you state how your assets should be handled, appoint someone to handle them and name the people for whose benefit the assets will be handled.

How do you know which approach or approaches are best for your circumstances? Contact an experienced estate planning attorney.

Reference: Times Herald-Record (March 15, 2017) “Transferring assets upon death.”

One of the biggest questions for family farmers today is, what will happen to the farm after they pass away, especially if their children are not interested in continuing it.

It is not a particularly easy time to be a family farmer in the U.S. Farmers face competition from agricultural imports from all over the world, which leads to lower prices for their products. That is expected to get worse in the coming years.

Even in the best of times, farming is not an easy occupation. It requires long hours of intense labor, despite the many technological advances of the last 100 years.

Farming is also expensive. Land is expensive. Seed is expensive. Equipment is also expensive.

To top it all off, farmers can be ruined by all kinds of bad weather.

It is no wonder that many children of farmers do not want to go into the industry.

That creates problems for farmers who would like to see their operations continue after they pass away, but would also like to make sure their children receive a just inheritance as Iowa Farmer Today discussed in “Good fences make good neighbors.”

Farmers need to decide how they should leave an inheritance for their non-farming children. It is a difficult decision whether to leave children the land and equipment or to sell everything off and leave the children the proceeds.

The key to making the decision might be asking the children what they prefer.

Of course, if everyone is uncertain, the children can always sell things off after they inherit, if that is what they want to do.

One thing is certain about farmers: they need estate plans to make sure they handle things in the best way for their families.

Reference: Iowa Farmer Today (April 14, 2017) “Good fences make good neighbors.”

Many people have fond memories of their vacation homes and would like to keep them in their families, after they pass away. That requires some considerations.

For many people, the best memories they have of spending time with their families is at a family vacation home when their children were still young. On vacation when people have few worries about work, they have more time to develop strong bonds with their children.

People remember these times fondly.

Many people would like to make sure those vacation homes remain in their families, so future generations can have similar experiences.

The Globe and Mail recently discussed some things to consider about how to do so in “How to keep the cottage in the family.”

While the paper is Canadian, the considerations are applicable to the U.S. and include:

•Consider any tax implications for your estate and children. Both federal and state estate taxes might need to be paid, as well as property taxes. It is important to ensure that money is available to pay those taxes.

•You might want to use a trust to pass your vacation home down to your family, especially if you have more than one child. A trust can preserve the property for generations and can also take care of any maintenance and property taxes.

•Make sure that your children want the vacation home. One or more of your children might have good reasons for not wanting it and you may need to equalize your estate to give them something else.

Reference: Globe and Mail (April 11, 2017) “How to keep the cottage in the family.”

When someone you know passes away, one of the most important things that you can do is to sincerely offer condolences to the deceased’s loved ones.

A lot of the time when we see other people hurting, we wonder what we can do to help. We often conclude that there is nothing we can do. It is common for this to happen, when we learn that someone has passed away and we see their family in mourning.

As humans, we lack the ability to bring the deceased back to life.

There are other things, however, we can do to help the family that do not require much time and effort as the Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog points out in “How Condolences Alleviate Grief.”

The easiest and one of the best ways to help people mourning for a loved one, is to let them know we care and to offer our condolences. This does not require a grand gesture. It only requires a sincere statement of sympathy.

Sending a card or flowers is another way to offer condolences. Charitable donations in the name of the deceased is also a small thing that can let grieving people know you care.

This is important. Knowing that other people really do care helps those who are grieving.

It does not fix everything. It does not bring anyone back to life. Nevertheless, it does help people move on and makes it easier for them to handle other things that need to be done when a loved one passes away, such as making funeral arrangements and dealing with the estate.

Reference: Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog (March 20, 2017) “How Condolences Alleviate Grief.”