Lawyers USA Online » estate planning

Estate can’t sue lawyer for negligent tax planning

Pat Murphy — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:20:46 +0000

The administrator of a client’s estate could not maintain a legal malpractice action for alleged negligent estate planning that resulted in increased tax liability, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled in affirming judgment.

The defendant provided estate planning services for a wealthy client. The defendant’s asset protection strategy consisted of
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Higher tax rates on trust income mean more work for lawyers

Sylvia Hsieh — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 22:11:56 +0000

In the aftermath of the fiscal cliff deal, trusts now face much higher taxes on income.

The top tax rate increased from 35 percent to 39.6 percent and a new Medicare surtax of 3.8 percent on investment income was imposed on top earners as of January 1.

But while the
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New landscape for estate planning attorneys

Sylvia Hsieh — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 17:40:51 +0000

The new law that averted the “fiscal cliff” contains major changes for estate and gift tax rules that will affect not only the advice lawyers give to their clients, but the future landscape of estate planning law for years to come.

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Ownership of digital assets concern for estate planners

Correy Stephenson — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 14:52:34 +0000

So much of an individual’s life now appears online, including bills, Facebook accounts and photo-sharing websites. But what happens to those assets when a person dies?

It should be standard practice for lawyers to advise clients to include digital assets in
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Trust beneficiaries have standing to sue trustee

Pat Murphy — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 17:48:16 +0000

The beneficiaries of a revocable trust had standing to sue the trustee for breach of fiduciary duty allegedly committed while the settlor was alive, the California Supreme Court has ruled in reversing judgment.

The defendant’s father created a revocable trust, naming the defendant as trustee. The father was the sole
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New Year brings more uncertainty over estate tax

Kimberly Atkins — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 20:27:45 +0000

WASHINGTON – As the budgetary wrangling between the White House and Congress continues, the only thing that is clear is that an agreement on long-term estate tax reform is unlikely. That means federal estate tax rate hikes and the loss
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Lawyer didn’t forfeit malpractice coverage

Pat Murphy — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:55:24 +0000

A lawyer didn’t violate a condition of his malpractice insurance coverage by admitting that he had made a mistake in drafting a will, the Illinois Appellate Court has ruled in affirming judgment.

The lawyer provided estate planning services to an elderly woman. After the woman died, the lawyer realized that
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Annuity didn’t render patient ineligible for Medicaid

Pat Murphy — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 12:18:31 +0000

A non-assignable annuity contract that provided income to the spouse of a nursing home patient did not count as an excess resource that needed to be spent down for the patient’s Medicaid eligibility, the 2nd Circuit has ruled in affirming judgment.

The plaintiff filed an application for Medicaid benefits with
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State AGs weigh in against DOMA

Correy Stephenson — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 17:01:01 +0000

The 2nd Circuit should strike down the Defense of Marriage Act as an unconstitutional violation of the equal protection rights of same-sex couples, a trio of state Attorneys General argues in a new brief.

The case, Windsor v. U.S, involves Edie Windsor and Thea Spyer, a same-sex couple who married
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Estate planning app launches

Correy Stephenson — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 20:30:54 +0000

There really is an app for everything – even estate planning.

A tech company has released an estate planning app which allows attorneys to customize an application that clients can use to manage their estates.

App Order executive director Trev Gore said that for $1,200 the company can re-format its
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