» Elder Law

Don’t Delay Discussing Your End-Of-Life Wishes in Ann Arbor

This uncomfortable, ethically questionable, confusing scene over Ms. Bayliss’ end of life did not have to happen the way it did.  If you don’t want to be in that kind of situation, you need to be responsible for deciding what you want and co… Read More
Read More
Categories: Elder Law

When to Revoke the So-Called Irrevocable Trust

Americans were once trust-happy. Now many are having second thoughts, and rightly so. How irrevocable is the so-called irrevocable trust? Well, many people are ready to find out as they consider changes to their trusts now that ATRA 2012 is in the mi… Read More
Read More

Business Succession Through Incentive Trusts

… We introduced an approach to trust drafting that would encourage financial literacy through provisions that are clear, objective, and correlated with the beneficiary’s ability to manage money responsibly. The prospect of whether or not a family… Read More
Read More

Taking Care of Your Elderly Parents’ Finances

"When they are having trouble understanding bills and writing checks it might be time to step in, slowly, at the ground level," Kolinsky said adding that if parents initiate a discussion, the ideal time would be when they are in their 70s a… Read More
Read More

A Beneficiary Blunder: Can Your Ex-Spouse Inherit Your Life Insurance?

Words to the wise: keep beneficiary forms up to date. To change a beneficiary — for example, if you get married or divorced or your spouse dies — make sure to file an amended form. Even if your state has a law designed to cover oversights (or pro… Read More
Read More

A New Outlook on the “Trust Fund Baby”

Many wealthy people worry about the potentially corrosive effect of making their children superrich. Not Larry Ellison. The Oracle founder and CEO, the third richest man in the United States — worth $43 billion, according to FORBES’ latest estima… Read More
Read More

Charitable Giving or Elder Abuse? Uncertainties of a Late Heiress’s Last Years

Admitted in 1991, Mrs. Clark ended up staying until her death, giving the hospital at least $4 million in donations, not counting millions more she paid just to live there and a $1 million bequest in her final, contested will, according to court pape… Read More
Read More

Medical Alert Scam Becoming Widespread

Barbara Adams, 70, keeps getting one of those annoying robocalls that she just knows has to be a scam. The voice implies that somebody, her doctor or maybe her children, signed her up for a medical alert system. It's all free, the recording impl… Read More
Read More

Dodging the Family Feud over Your Estate

Unfortunately, estate planning can cause family feuds over inheritance, often leading to litigation that can become lengthy and costly with no clear winner. From our experience, family litigation occurs not from a lack of trying to solve the issue, b… Read More
Read More

Don’t Hold Off on Having Those Hard “Talks” … Or It Will Cost You

If you haven’t had a conversation with your parents about handling their financial affairs after they die, Krysten Crawford’s tale may spring you into action. Certain “talks” or conversations are imperative, although some of those discussions… Read More
Read More