I covered 2 primary topics during my presentation at the American Embassy in Jamaica. One was the 7 principles of wealth which I will post on tomorrow and the 7 benefits of estate planning.
The 7 benefits of estate planning are (1) protect assets; (2) save money; (3) establish a legacy; (4) address special circumstances; (5) discern elder needs; (6) distribute wealth; and (7) obtain peace of mind.
As the elephants emerged from the water, their huge ivory tusks fasinated me the most. These gigantic but gentle creatures share the earth with us and fortunately we now protect them from being hunted for their tusks. I can therefore sit on our boat with my 10 year old daughter and marvel with her on the graceful way the white tusks elephants emerge from the River.
Without the interference of man, animals instinctively protect and preserve themselves as well as the longivity of their offspring. They want their young to learn and benefit from them. It is a natural fact, a given. For us, we have a choice to protect and preserve ourselves and our assets as well as the future of the next generation. It is our choice to plan or not to plan.
If the wisdom of the animal kingdom provides any answers, planning would be our best choice. Contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/ for your estate planning needs.
While vacationing with my family in Jamaica, the Island of sunny skies and warm people, I was able to leave behind our hectic work and home life. So between eating the speciality dishes, climbing the falls of Dunn River; swimming with Dolphins, Sharks and Stingrays at Dolphin Cove and Bobsledding in Mystic Mountain, I read. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.
The story of Henrietta Lacks is both disturbing and comforting. Disturbing in the unsettled nature of the acquisition of her cells and comforting in the contribution her cells have made and continue to make to advances in science. "HeLa" the name of Henreitta Lacks' cells which continue to live and multiply well after her death in 1951 were vital in the development of the polio vaccine, gene mapping and helped in developing drugs for influenza, Parkinson's disease and continues to aid cancer research and all other medical research.
Henreitta Lack's stories raises for me yet another question regarding our assets and the extent to which we can control the distribution of them during and after our lifetime. Contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/ with your estate planning, elder law and probate questions.
This blog post continues from October 24 when we started to look at the 5th benefit of estate planning, addresses special circumstances.
Remember the other 4 of the 7 essential benefits of estate planning are;
(1) protects assets
(2) saves money
(3) creates a legacy
(4) distributes wealth.
Today we continue to discuss how estate planning addresses special circumstances. In the case of Linwood and Jordan who are same sex partners, they have to address their property interests through advance planning. If either Linwood or Jordan died without a will, no property would go to the other unless there was joint ownership, a trust or beneficiary designation with the partner's name. There would have to be planning to minimize the inheritance tax since the 0 rate would not apply to unmarried individuals.
What about their son, Julian? We will discuss his special circumstances tomorrow. Leave your comments here or contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/
We have been exploring the 7 essential benefits of estate planning; (1) protects assets (2) saves money (3) creates a legacy (4) distributes wealth. Today we discuss number (5) how estate planning addresses special circumstances. Let's take a look at Linwood's and Jordan's situation.
Linwood and Jordan are the same sex and have lived together for twenty-five years. They do not live in a state that recognizes gay marriages. They adopted their special needs son Julian, who was 10 years old at the time of the adoption. Julian has thrived and progressed significantly over the last sixteen years with the love, attention, and hard work of his parents. Linwood's skills as a nurse have been most helpful to Julian. Julian’s Seeing Eye dogs have helped, and his current dog is an integral part of his life. All of this has enabled Julian to live on his own with the support of state programs.
What issues will Linwood, Jordan and Julian face and how can those issues be addressed through estate planning? We will begin to look at the answer to these questions and any that you may leave here or when you contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/
Today, we continue our discussion regarding the benefits of estate planning. The first two, 1. Protects Assets and 2. Saves Money, have already been discussed over the last few days. This third benefit, Creates A Legacy, is, in my opinion, the most important because we all have a legacy to leave. The problem is that most of us fail to document that legacy or even more problematic fail to see the legacy worth of our life.
There has not been a single client that I have counseled who did not have a legacy worth documenting in some way. Remember, estate planning is a process as well as the tangible development and execution of legal documents. And it is that process that gives my practice its competitive edge. I may guide someone into starting a business, a foundation or a charitable organization because of what I learn about them during the estate planning process. I may suggest writing a book, journaling, speaking or putting on a photo/art/sculpture exhibit. Whether it is a financial gain to me or an Aha moment for my client, in my practice the estate planning process is always mutually beneficial.
Tomorrow, let's revisit Max and Margaret to look at their legacy and how estate planning will help. Leave your comments here or contact us http://www.ythlaw.com/
we visit Eve and Bob. Both Eve and Bob inherited wealth and made a lot more money beyond their inheritance. They now breed show dogs and actively participate in charities benefiting animals. They only have one daughter, Julia, who at thirty-six still can not quite make it on her own. She has already experienced personal bankruptcy and, given her unemployment history, would be on welfare if not for her parents’ continued support.
Eve and Bob want to make sure Julia will not become destitute when they die. Therefore, instead of leaving money outright to her upon their death, their estate plan includes a trust for the money left for Julia, who is not fiscally responsible enough to manage the money herself. A trust is effective because Eve and Bob appointed a trustee to both manage and distribute the money for Julia’s benefit.
The cash left for Julia by her parents will not be subject to the claims of Julia’s creditors. Nor will the cash be subject to any further bankruptcy, lawsuits, or divorce settlement Julia may experience in the future. It is Eve’s and Bob’s legacy that is being protected. They have the right to determine who will be the recipient of their bounty.
For Eve and Bob, money represents their primary asset. How do you define your assets? Do you consider your children, your home, or the money you have accumulated over your lifetime, as Eve and Bob did, your assets? Do you consider yourself an asset? However you define assets, it is important to know that we all have assets, and they are worth protecting.
Tomorrow, we will continue to follow the legacy of Eve and Bob and the journey of their daughter Julia. Leave your comments here or contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/
