In the continuing saga of Anna Nicole Smith, a federal appeals court has ruled that she, and now her estate, is not entitled to any of her late husband, J. Howard Marshall’s millions. For an excellent write up of the case, see my fellow Florida Probate attorney and blogger, Juan Antunez’s post here.
“Video Wills” are invalid and inadmissible in Florida
Yesterday at my networking group meeting we were visited by a woman who runs a video production company catering towards attorneys. As she was introducing herself to the group, she stated that among the services she provides was filming depositions and allowing people to film video wills. At which my ears perked up. Video wills?… Read More
A “Holographic” Will is ALWAYS invalid in Florida, unless it is properly executed
One thing that makes our country both great and frustrating is that for certain types of law, there are often different, incompatible, conflicting laws that vary by state. On occasion, various committees are formed to draft “Uniform” Codes, but it is still up to the individual state legislatures as to whether or not they should… Read More
States Struggle to Deal with Congress’s Shameful Estate Tax Mess
The Year Without an Estate Tax continues. As I have previously written, due to Congress’s extreme irresponsibility and inability to get anything done at all, the Estate and Generation Skipping taxes are repealed in 2010, but for one year and one year only. Last December, in a post entitled, The Real Danger of the Expiring… Read More
I will be attending the Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning
Next week I will be attending the 44th annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning which is sponsored by the University of Miami Law School. Heckerling is a week-long conference on estate planning, administration, tax, and other related issues. This year should be especially interesting because of the current repeal of the estate tax. I hope to… Read More
The Real Danger of the Expiring Estate Tax: Existing Documents
If the Senate doesn’t get its act together, it it looks like it won’t, the estate tax is going to expire on December 31, 2009. As I’ve written many times before, this is just a one year vacation from the estate tax. It is scheduled to come back with a vengeance on January 1, 2011…. Read More
The Heritage Foundation Deliberately Misleads (or in the Alternative is Embarrassingly Wrong) on Estate Tax Repeal
I don’t think I’ve taken a posistion on this blog pro or con as to whether the estate tax should be repealed. I have clients who have taxable estates and I have clients without taxable estates. As planning for the estate tax is only a part of what I do, I’ll be able to continue… Read More
Some Gift Ideas and Reminders for this Festivus Season
As the Festivus shopping season begins this Cyber Monday, I’d like to remind my readers of a few facts about gifting. First, the “annual exclusion” for 2009 is $13,000. That means any person can give any other person a minimum of $13,000 without having to worry about the gift tax. A married couple can give a… Read More
Be Thankful for Your Family, and Don’t be a Procrastinator
I admit it. I’m a procrastinator. I put off things like going to the Dentist, getting my oil changed, or even hanging pictures on my walls. I know these are things I should get done, but I keep putting them off. I find that many people are the same way with their estate planning. Most… Read More
Bankrate.com’s 2009 Estate Planning Guide
I’m not sure how recent this is (I think that some if it is fairly new), but I have just come upon Bankrate.com‘s 2009 Estate Planning Guide. It is broken down into four chapters, with an example of an article from each chapter in parenthesis: Planning for Life (8 life stages of estate planning) Planning Techniques (9… Read More
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