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Category Archives: Probate

Bono, Ledger, Jackson – Bad Examples of Estate Planning

Written on August 23, 2010 by Thom Cooper in Estate Planning, Planning, Probate, Trust

By Angela Hall

How do you motivate someone to consider estate planning? You can educate clients about proper estate planning and how it can help them, their families, and their estate tax returns. The fact of the matter remains, however, that many people will have excuses to push their legal planning until later. They think they have plenty of time.

There are plenty of legitamate reasons to delay: being too busy with the kids, jobs or other responsibilities. Some find it a very uncomfortable subject, or have uncooperative spouses or parents who make it difficult. Whatever the reason, when it comes to proper estate planning it is vital to search out all of your options, and do it before you are facing a crisis. These are just a few examples of celebrities who did not have good estate plan.

Sonny Bono was 62 years old when he died unexpectedly in a skiing accident. He did not have a will or trust and left his widow with a lot of complicated issues because of his lack of planning.

Heath Ledger failed to update his will after the birth of his daughter, therefore is was a unfortunate that his wishes in regard to how she was to be taken care of were not considered.

Michael Jackson caused his family many unnecessary trips to the courthouse because he did not properly “fund” his trust.

Take a lesson from these examples: be certain that your will or trust has been updated and that assets have been transferred into your trust. It’s not enough to just “do” the documents, they need to be done the right way and updated in light of new laws and life changes. It is also vitally important that you hire an attorney that specializes in elder law and estate planning. “One-size-fits-all” forms are not the way to go when it comes to developing an estate plan. Your documents should be customized to fit your particular needs and desires.

What You Can Learn from Gary Coleman’s Poor Planning

Written on August 16, 2010 by Thom Cooper in Case Study, Estate Planning, Planning, Probate

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By Attorney Renee Fox

Prepare yourself for groundbreaking news: Lady Gaga has more friends on Facebook than you do! In fact, she has more Facebook friends than any other living person. She has more than 10 million friends. Regardless of his death one year ago, Michael Jackson currently has more Facebook friends than Lady Gaga; And many other dead celebrities aren’t doing too bad either. Let’s take a look at the late Gary Coleman; whose estate has recently made headlines.

Gary Coleman’s Estate

Gary Coleman was a child who starred in the TV sitcom Diff’rent Strokes between 1978 and 1986. He grew to hate his catch phrase “Whatchu talkin’ ’bout Willis?”even though it made him millions.

Gary Coleman was paid as much as $100,000 per episode but had financial difficulties later in life. After funds went to his parents, agents, lawyers, and taxes, only a quarter of his earnings may have reached him. After the mismanagement of his Trust by his parents Coleman was forced to declare bankruptcy.

Coleman made appearances, married and divorced, attempted suicide, had kidney transplants, worked as a security guard, was prosecuted for punching a woman who mocked him, collected model trains, and ran for Governor of California in 2003 and placed relatively high in the rankings.

Tragically, Coleman died earlier this year after suffering from a head injury. Three people are in the running to be the special administrator of Coleman’s estate. One is his ex-wife, another is his former girlfriend, and a third is his former manager. Manager Dion Mial relies on a 1999 last will and testament that names him as executor. Former girlfriend Anna Gray relies on a 2005 will. Ex-wife and alleged surviving common law spouse, Shannon Price, filed a 2007 codicil that purports to amend all prior wills. She is hoping to locate a subsequent will naming her as executor.

Logically, the 2005 will would revoke the 1999 will. A handwritten note from 2007 would not have significant legal effect, unless it was executed with all the will formalities, such as witnesses and notaries. But it could be used to show his intent to revoke the 2005 will and may be accepted as a holographic will in some jurisdictions.

Getting married in 2007 could also cast doubt on earlier wills. However, Shannon Price and Mr. Coleman were divorced at the time of his death. Her basis for inheritance rests on her allegation that they reconciled and formed a new relationship after they were divorced. Court documents indicate that the two lived together, shared bank accounts, and held themselves out to the world as married, even after the divorce. Price was also Coleman’s agent in his advanced health care directive, and she gave the order to take Coleman off of life support. At the time of his death, Coleman was living with his ex-wife, Shannon Price, and his death certificate indicates that he was married.

Is this an estate worth fighting over? Remember, he declared bankruptcy in 1990? The answer depends upon the value and size of his estate both at and after death. There is still marketing to be done, book deals to be made, movie rights, and sales of memorabilia to be had. He had a home, a pension, and residual rights. To show the value of such media attention, Price is reported to have photographed Coleman on his deathbed and then sold the photos to the tabloids.

Final Thoughts

Sound estate planning can involve sophisticated plans that protect assets from creditors and predators, avoid unnecessary taxation, and build assets over generations. But there is also something to be said for a simple document that names executors or trustees and distributes your assets according to your wishes. It can avoid years of litigation and family turmoil. Large or small, we all need an estate plan contact the Attorneys at the Thom L. Cooper Company to set up an appointment today.

A Probate Over a Safety Deposit Box?

Written on June 21, 2010 by Thom Cooper in Asset Protection, Case Study, Estate Planning, Probate

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By Lauren Cooper

probate After her mother had passed away, Sharon and I met to discuss what needed to be done to settle her mother’s estate. We had previously worked with Mom, who was a widow, with the goal of protecting her children from the hassle and expense of probate. We established a Revocable Living Trust for Mom and during that process she had mentioned to us that she had a safety deposit box at her local bank. We advised her to go to the bank and have it re-titled into her Trust. When Mom went into the bank to do this, the bank teller told her it was unnecessary to retitle the safety deposit box because Sharon already had full access to the box. However, after Mom passed away, it became clear that what she had been told regarding her safety deposit box was misleading.

Mom’s real estate and bank accounts were all titled into her trust and were therefore immediately under the control of her appointed Successor Trustee, Sharon. Within a month of Mom’s death all of the bills were paid and the assets were ready to be distributed, however there was one thing that Sharon had not handled—the safety deposit box. When Sharon went to Mom’s bank, the teller informed her that she no longer had the ability to access the box because she had only been listed as Power of Attorney over the box. Unfortunately, the authority provided through a Power of Attorney ends at death.

The bank continued to refuse access to the safety deposit box by anyone but an Executor appointed by the Probate Court. Unfortunately, Sharon had no choice but to open a probate administration, which much to Sharon’s dismay would make everything in the box public record. Even with all of the heirs cooperating, it took over two months of submitting documentation to the Court before Sharon was appointed Executor and the bank let her remove all assets from the safety deposit box. At this point you must be wondering what was actually in this the safety deposit box. No it wasn’t gold, diamonds, or stock certificates. When Sharon went into the box, all that was there was one $50 bond that was worth around $35!

For the most part, our clients that require probate administrations of their estates never saw an Elder Law Attorney prior to their death to establish an estate plan. However, in this case, Mom’s one innocent mistake brought about by the short-sighted advice of an employee at her local bank caused her heirs several additional months of time and hundreds of dollars in Court costs.

Luckily, you can fix or avoid this problem easily as long as you are aware of what needs to happen and, in some cases, are persistent with your bank. Safety deposit boxes can usually be re-titled into a Revocable Living Trust, which would give the Successor Trustee immediate access to them. If you do not have a trust or if your bank does not allow for your trust to be the owner, then you should register your Successor Trustee as a co-owner of the box. If you have a safety deposit box, this simple measure will prevent the loss of time and money that our client’s heirs had to endure.

A Continuing Saga in the Life of the Old and The Frustrated

Written on June 7, 2010 by Thom Cooper in Asset Protection, Estate Planning, Old and the Frustrated, Planning, Probate

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old and frustrated by Guest Author, Certified Paralegal, Robin Crouch

Scene 4: “Silver Slippers” and The Gym

Having recently joined a local gym designed for women, like me, who may be intimidated by traditional gyms, I find the program interesting, and even fun. This is the kind of place where nobody knows your name but everybody knows your game . . .

Dot and Hootie (so named for their exercise technique) were feeling pretty good about their regular workouts, about the weight they’d lost and the firmness they’d gained. That is, until that pesky Flo bounced through the door, one more obstacle between themselves and thinner summer thighs of their dreams. You see, Flo is planning her wedding, her THIRD:

The Casserole

Some months ago, Flo delivered her famous chicken casserole to a recent widower, Harry. Flo was familiar with Harry and the lifestyle he and his wife had enjoyed together. There was nothing Flo wouldn’t do to have that same lifestyle, after all, she deserves it. Flo is a two – time widow, with two children of her own. Flo has learned the ins & outs of probate court, she knows her rights as a surviving spouse. As it turns out, Harry is quite a bit older and Flo has the motivation, not to mention a great pair of active wear shorts that ride the great divide.

Harry accepted that casserole along with the casual drop-ins and the coffee cakes, and before long, a new life with Flo became very appealing.

Getting His Ducks in a Row

Unknown to Flo, Harry’s desire for that new start did not diminish his capacity for thought, so he made that appointment with his Elder Law Attorney to “get his ducks in a row” prior to popping the question. Harry also has two children, who are very happy that he has found new companionship, but were a little worried about “losing the farm.” After the consultation with his Elder Law Attorney, about this new event in his life, Harry was able to preserve his children’s inheritance and provide for his new bride.

Lesson 10: A lonely person wearing clouded glasses can make poor decisions.

A little prevention — good planning, thoughtful choices and a clear discussion among family members — can sidestep an ugly aftermath.

If you are contemplating a new marriage, call us for a consultation with one of our attorneys. We can add a “casserole provision” to your existing estate plan or customize a plan to fit your individual needs.

Next time, Hootie and the ruptured disc.

How Mr Campbell Disinherited his Son While Trying to Avoid Probate

Written on July 29, 2009 by Thom Cooper in Aging, Case Study, Elder Law, Estate Planning, Probate

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A common goal among the elderly is to save their children from going to probate when they die. On this blog we talk about several techniques to “probate protect” assets. Depending on the type of asset, probate protection can be as easy as filling out the proper paperwork to add a beneficiary to an account at the institution holding or managing the assets. However, what comes of this common practice is often an unintended result.   Consider the following recent scenario:  Mr. Campbell (not his real name), a widower, passed away owning the following assets at his death: A $1500 checking account, $26,000 Money Market, $142,000 Annuity, and an Investment Account holding $125,000 in assets.His Last Will and Testament named his son, John, as the Executor of his Estate. It also specified John and his sister, Lisa, as the sole beneficiaries with all assets to be divided equally between them. Mr. Campbell told John, in no uncertain terms, that the assets were to be split 50/50 between John and his sister. When Mr. Campbell passed away, John, as Executor, sought our advice when he suspected that a long, drawn out probate administration would be required to distribute his dad’s assets.  After some initial research on the accounts, I had the opportunity to explain to John that his father had done a great job in “probate protecting” his assets and that no administration would be required… however, I also had to explain that in the process, he ended up disinheriting John. Mr. Campbell had listed Lisa as a beneficiary on every account he had and the sole beneficiary of the Annuity contract. John was stunned.

Luckily, there was a happy ending for this family. Because the family was very close, Lisa did end up giving John his 50% of the estate, as her father intended, but she certainly was under no obligation to do so.

While things worked out in the end for the Campbell Family, all too often this type of Probate Avoidance ends up causing family battles and sibling rivalries. When planning for the distribution of your own Estate, it is important to understand that your “Last Will and Testament” does not control distribution for Joint Accounts, Payable on Death Accounts, or any asset with a beneficiary. When working towards your goal of Probate Avoidance, make sure you work with a professional elder law team to make sure you understand the implications of your beneficiary choices.