How Can You Protect an Heir’s Inheritance from His or Her Spouse?
Whether you fear that your child has married someone unreliable or you have faced the reality that around half of all marriages end in divorce, there can be a number of reasons why you would worry about leaving an inheritance to your child that would end up in the hands of a spouse who...
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What Are the Most Common Estate Planning Mistakes to Avoid?
Putting an estate plan in place is so important. One of the most common estate planning mistakes is not having an estate plan at all. That being said, a properly drafted estate plan is critical to best serving you and your loved ones. Mistakes in the drafting of an estate plan can have serious...
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Why Would You Want to Avoid Probate?
You may have heard many negative sentiments about the probate process. However, many people do not actually understand the specifics about why people try to avoid probate. Proper planning ahead of time can help ensure that your estate will not need to go through probate at all or will, at least, substantially avoid...
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Choosing an Executor
Choosing an executor is one of several important decisions you will need to make during the estate planning process. It may be easy just to pick one of your kids or another family member to take on this role, which is fine in some cases, but there several considerations to keep in mind before...
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What to Include in Your Will
A will is a legal tool that allows you to provide directions as to how you want your personal assets distributed when you die. This is what many people think of when a will comes to mind, but it can do so much more. There are several other provisions you can include in...
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What to Consider in Choosing a Guardian for your Children
If you are the parent of a minor child, one of the most important estate planning decisions you will make is choosing a guardian. The guardian you choose will take over the enormous task of caring for your children should you pass away or become incapacitated. While the possibility of this happening is heart-wrenching,...
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North Carolina Small Estates
Some states, like North Carolina, have provisions for smaller estates that allow the estate to be administered in a way that is less expensive and time-consuming than the probate process for larger estates. To qualify for small estate administration, certain requirements must be met. Additionally, you must be prepared to pay a court...
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Inheritance for Surviving Spouses
The law recognizes that we come to depend on our spouses in a multitude of ways. We depend on our spouses for things like both emotional and financial support. If your spouse passes away and, for some reason or another, fails to leave you an inheritance or leave you a small inheritance, you may...
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Filing the Estate Income Tax
The executor of the estate has many responsibilities when it comes to the managing and settling of the estate. One such responsibility is filing income tax on behalf of the estate. The executor is required to file a federal income tax return using Form 1041 for the estate if the estate has a gross...
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James Brown’s Estate
On January 18, 2007, the last will and testament of James Brown was admitted for probate in South Carolina. The late rock and roll legend had passed away on Christmas Day of 2006. But, almost 13 years later, his estate has yet to be fully resolved. The issues and complications that have come up...
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