A man divorced his wife in California in 1999, and soon fell way behind in his alimony and child support payments. He moved to Pennsylvania and remarried in 2006. Shortly before his remarriage, the man acquired some valuable real estate…
A living will allows an individual to take control of his/her future medical treatment in advance of an incapacitating illness or injury by specifying in advance whether or not a person is to have his/her life prolonged through artificial or…
A ‘letter of instruction’ can spare you and your heirs a lot of stress if you die or become incapacitated. It can help your family sort through your affairs and find the information they need to help you. Without it,…
Andrew Reitz set up a trust to benefit his sons, with an independent trustee. The trust document said that if there was a dispute between his sons and the trustee, it would be decided by a private arbitrator rather than…
Did you know that your will does not determine who gets your IRA or your 40l(k) account when you die? That’s right – these accounts are “non-probate” assets, which means they’re not covered by your will. Instead, they will generally…
If you’re donating assets to a charity, don’t scrimp when it comes to an appraisal and don’t try to file the tax forms yourself. That’s the lesson of a recent case from the U.S. Tax Court. The case involved Joe…
Same-sex couples should review their estate plans in light of the Supreme Courts decision striking down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. The Supreme Court said that the federal law, which refused to recognize same-sex marriages with regard…
In the event of unsuccessful challenges to the arbitration award or failure to comply with the award, the prevailing party is ordinarily entitled to costs, including a reasonable attorneys’ fee for having to compel arbitration or defend or enforce the…
The Florida Bar website has valuable, free resources available for the general public. Please visit the Florida Bar Association. On the home page at the top left hand corner, click on the link “For the Public”. There you will find Consumer…
As we age, our financial resources and priorities begin to shift; we may no longer be receiving a bi-weekly paycheck, but we also may no longer have dependent children. However, a lot of stress can result from living on a…