We have blogged several times about Missouri Beneficiary Deeds — the good, the bad, and the ugly. We ran into a new situation today. A divorced dad died a few months ago and left his house to 19 year old Molly, his only child, through a beneficiary deed. We offered to help her with “getting…
I got a call the other day from Larry. Larry is very concerned that his mother’s trust will be challenged. Mom’s second husband died several years back. Mom and her second husband each had their own children from their first marriages. At the time of the second husband’s death his children received what amounted to his assets and property. Larry’s Mom then…
Yes, you read that correctly. We will prepare a simple will for free for anyone who lives in Missouri. Yes, there are conditions, and yes, there is a catch! Click here to get the details, and find out how to sign up. Why do we do this? Because we know that a simple will does…
We came across an interesting situation today. A funeral director was demanding that all the children of a recently deceased client consent to a cremation. One of the children was out of the country permanently, and could not be reached. Fortunately I was able to convince the lawyer for the funeral home that the child…
A good friend and client just became the victim of a poorly conceived Estate Plan involving a Missouri Beneficiary Deed. Fortunately I wasn’t the one who advised that be used. Unfortunately I wasn’t asked to, because I would have advised against it. My friend, Lenny, and his sister, Martha, had been named beneficiaries on their…
I recently happened across a blog post called “Estate Planning 101” in The Family Wallet. Now to be very fair, I don’t know the author, and believe them to be very well intentioned. Unfortunately, the post is a perfect illustration of the incorrect information and bad advice that is often given by good people trying…
An often overlooked matter in Estate Planning is leaving instructions to loved ones as to final arrangements, the funeral, burial, and related matters. This is likely the case because we get focused on stricly legal and financial matters – which is a natural thing to do. It’s also because this is work that the lawyer…