How much does “marriage” matter when it comes to estate planning? The recent California court ruling on gay marriage has thrown marriage and its meaning once again into the limelight, and has many people thinking about what marriage means on a legal level.

Anyone who pays taxes knows that your marital status matters to the state and federal government. Your marital status also impacts your rights when it comes to insurance, privacy, pensions, and even probate. For example, the property of a married person who dies without a will automatically passes to their spouse (and children)*—this is not necessarily the case for unmarried couples. Similarly, in an emergency medical situation a spouse will have access to information about his or her injured spouse, but unmarried couples do not always have this same privilege. Although there is good reason behind these privacy laws, it can be particularly distressing when couples who have lived together for years may suddenly have trouble getting medical staff to recognize their partner when a medical decision needs to be made.

Luckily, your estate planning attorney can help circumvent some of the potential problems unmarried couples may face in case of incapacity or upon death. Executing an Advanced Health Care Directive or Health Care Power of Attorney will ensure that medical personnel recognize the authority of a trusted partner to make medical decisions for you. Similarly, by creating a Will or Trust you can nominate the person you want to act as executor of your estate upon your death, and who the beneficiaries of your property will be, regardless of whether you have a marriage license or not.

The issue of marriage is one that is obviously very close to the heart, but estate planners see it on a practical level as well. In the legal world of estate planning our goal is to ensure that your wishes for end of life health care and final distribution of wealth are honored—regardless of your marital status.

*Please note: Probate laws will vary from state to state—be sure to talk to your estate planning attorney about the laws specific to your state of residence.

In our last post we wrote about what matters most when choosing a long-term care living situation, suggesting that it’s not always the place that matters most, but the mind-set of the elderly person who will be living there, and how involved that person is in the decision-making process. However, this does not mean that the quality of each living place doesn’t matter at all. In fact, according to the Wall Street Journal great care should still be taken when selecting a long-term care living situation… especially if you’re considering a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC).

If you are considering a CCRC for yourself or an elderly loved one, you may want to read this article in the WSJ, which mentions that although more and more older Americans are drawn to the benefits offered by a Continuing Care Retirement Community, those benefits “often come at a steep price and ‘considerable risk.’”

The article goes on to mention that “So-called CCRCs—which typically offer fine dining, health clubs and on-site long-term care—have grown in popularity along with the aging of the population, particularly among the upper-middle class and affluent,” but that “the economic downturn is making it tougher for potential new residents to sell their existing homes and fill openings in new and expanded communities, which are generally regulated by state governments. As a result, low occupancy levels are challenging the industry’s financial models.”

We mention this because many of our clients are at a time in their lives when they or their elderly parents are looking into long-term care living situations, and we see how difficult it is to sort through all the choices and find a place that fits. Not only is quality of life an important factor (maybe the most important factor), but for many people the cost of the place they choose may mean the difference between leaving their children an inheritance and dying penniless.

We urge any of our readers who are in the market for long-term care living arrangements to look carefully at all their options; ask questions, do the research, and don’t be afraid to ask for help or a second opinion.

Anyone who has been following our blog knows that the expiring Bush tax cuts (including the repeal of the estate tax this year and the tax’s reinstatement next year) have given lawmakers no end of trouble as they struggle and debate—and debate and struggle—to agree on new tax legislation moving forward. In fact, The Wall Street Journal calls the issue “a ticking time bomb,” while the New York Times warns that “an epic fight is brewing.” It seems that the only thing everyone does agree on is that something has to be done before December 31, 2010.

Unfortunately, according to both news sources, politics takes precedence over legislation. “The tax fight will serve as a proxy for the bigger political clashes of the year, including the size of government and the best way of handling the tepid economic recovery,” warns David M. Herszenhorn of the NY Times, “’…this is code for the role of the federal government, the debate over the size of government and the priorities of the nation.’”

According to David Wessel of the WSJ party lines are clearly drawn. “The Obama administration is pressing to extend the Bush tax cuts for everyone with an income under $250,000 a year and to raise taxes on those above. A recent Pew/National Journal poll found that only 11% of Democrats favor extending all the Bush tax cuts.” Meanwhile, “Republicans are happily staking out the no-new-taxes turf, playing to their traditional constituency. Pew says 52% of Republicans favor extending all the Bush tax cuts.”

It would certainly give taxpayers some comfort if legislation could be passed quickly and decisively, but Herszenhorn warns that it’s not likely to happen, “Given the partisan gridlock of recent months, there is a chance that the battle could go down to the last minute, or even — in the face of a stalemate — that the tax cuts could be allowed to expire completely, a development that… lawmakers in both parties say could be the worst outcome.”

Either way, the best advice we can give our readers is to be prepared. Just because lawmakers keep putting off a decision doesn’t mean you should. Talk to your attorney about the best way for your family to weather the coming storm. Be aware of changes to tax laws and update your estate plan accordingly.

Our country may be facing a simultaneous growth and recession… unfortunately, according to journalist John Leland, the two seem to be at odds. What we are referring to is the growth of the elderly population and the recession of funds available to help this aging community pay for the care they need.

The economic downturn of the past few years has hit the elderly with a double-whammy. Many of them lost close to all of their savings when the stock market bottomed out, and now budget cuts to state-funded home-care services threaten to force many of them out of their homes and into hospitals or nursing facilities.

“’I’m not getting a cost-of-living adjustment, and now I’m not getting food,’ said Joyce Plennert, 83, who is on a waiting list for Meals on Wheels in Palatine, Ill. ‘Now I’m worried my home services will be cut. Without that, I’d be in a nursing home, if I could find one with room.’”

According to the above-mentioned NY Times article, a number of states have already made cuts to home-care services, including Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York and Texas. “The situation is grim, and it’s safe to say that present trends are expected to continue,”

These budget cuts impact more than just senior citizens—they affect the professional caregivers and home aides who lose their jobs when state programs are cancelled, as well as the families of the elderly. When these seniors lose their ability to live at home it’s their families who will have to pick up the slack either by contributing to the costs of care or more often by become the caregiver themselves.

If you or a loved one is facing a loss of benefits due to budget cuts don’t be afraid to explore your options. Geriatric care managers can help families through confusing times, and other advisors such as elder lawyers, estate planners, financial planners and others can offer invaluable advice when creating your plan for the future.

With all the estate tax proposals currently floating around the Senate the future of the estate tax is anybody’s guess… but that doesn’t mean we’ll stop trying to figure it out. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal touches on some of the more recent (and more controversial) proposals floating around Washington.

The proposal that is currently getting the most attention comes from Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders and three Senate Democrats who say that “It’s time for multi-millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share.” And pay they would! According to Sanders’ proposal “the [estate tax] exemption would be $3.5 million for an individual or as much as $7 million for a couple, with a tax rate of 45%. But estates with taxable assets between $10 million and $50 million would pay a 50% rate, and estates valued above $50 million would pay 55%. A further 10% surtax would apply to assets above $500 million.”

Of course, it’s too early to get worked up just yet, Sanders’ proposal is just one of many right now, and the debate still rages in the Senate with no clear winner in sight. Of course, if no action is taken the estate tax will come back in 2011 with a 55% tax rate on estates above a mere $1.2 million.

Either way, you’ll want to be prepared, and the only way to do that is to keep in contact with your estate planner and make sure that your plan is designed to handle anything. Although it may be tempting to wait to update your estate plan until a clear decision is made, all that really does is leave your family unprepared if something should happen to you while the tax is in flux. Contact our office to find out what adjustments should be made to your estate plan to keep your family protected while lawmakers continue to debate the future of the estate tax.

There seems to be some confusion nowadays about whether “a dog’s life” refers to a life of ease or toil, but for these wealthy canine heirs life is definitely the former!Whether it’s a wealthy eccentric leaving millions to a dear canine companion or whether it’s a lover of animals leaving a portion of their estate to charity, more and more dogs (and other animals) are being included in wills and trusts.

Naming your pet in your will or trust may be odd, but it’s perfectly legitimate. Unfortunately, disinherited family members may not always agree. When Leona Helmsley passed away in 2007 she left $12 million to her dog Trouble, but that amount was reduced by Judge Renee Roth of the Manhattan Surrogate Court to a mere $2 million. The current canine court battle is over the will of Miami heiress Gail Posner, which leaves $3 million to her dog Conchita, as well as $26 million split between seven of her bodyguards, housekeepers and other personal aides.

Naming your pet in your will may be perfectly legitimate, but the truth is that there is nothing to stop disgruntled family members from contesting your wishes. If you choose to do something “unusual” in your will or trust, or if you know of family members who are likely to make trouble, it may be necessary to take extra precautions to ensure your wishes are followed. Inform your estate planning attorney of the potential conflict and discuss what steps can be taken to prevent it. In some cases “no contest clauses” can be added to a will or trust to discourage court battles. In other cases a simple meeting of all family members with your attorney to explain your wishes and reasoning will do the trick. Talk to your attorney or call our office to find out what can be done to keep the peace in your family—canine or human.

Six months into 2010 and the estate tax repeal is still making news. This time it’s a story about Texas billionaire Dan L. Duncan who died in March, leaving all of his billions to his spouse, family and various charitable organizations… and none to the government:

“Had his life ended three months earlier, Mr. Duncan’s riches — Forbes magazine estimated his worth at $9 billion, ranking him as the 74th wealthiest in the world — would have been subject to a federal tax of at least 45 percent. If he had lived past Jan. 1, 2011, the rate would be even higher… Instead, because Congress allowed the tax to lapse for one year and gave all estates a free pass in 2010, Mr. Duncan’s four children and four grandchildren stand to collect billions that in any other year would have gone to the Treasury.”

According to the NY Times article this news is meeting with mixed reactions. Opponents of the estate tax (sometimes called the death tax) are hoping to make the repeal permanent. Others, however, don’t agree:

“’The ultrawealthy in this country will still be able to pass on enormous wealth to the next generation,’ said Chuck Collins, who studies income inequality and has worked with billionaires like Warren E. Buffett and Bill Gates to promote an estate tax. Mr. Collins argues that the tax is a ‘recycling program for economic opportunity.’”

Whatever happens in future years, considering that this year is already half over it can only be hoped that heirs and executors won’t have to worry about the tax being reinstated and made effective retroactively; which leaves us free to look ahead and plan for 2011 when the estate tax comes back at a whopping 55%. If you’re wondering how all these changes will impact your estate plan today, tomorrow, or years in the future please call our office.

As we age we become vulnerable. We begin to doubt our memories, our bodies are not as reliable as they used to be, and technological advances outstrip our abilities to keep up with them. With this vulnerability comes the opportunity for abuse.

Unfortunately, elder abuse is becoming more and more common, both physically and financially. Seniors are a growing class of individuals with money in savings or retirement, and there is no shortage of scam artists looking to take advantage of them financially. The truly sad fact is that most financial elder abuse is committed by someone close to the victim, a person in whom they have placed their trust. In such cases, the abuse may not be pre-meditated, but that in no way makes the abuse acceptable.

The good news is that there are ways to guard against elder abuse; and one of the best ways to guard against it is to be aware of it. June 15th is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and we urge our readers to participate and find out how they can learn more about this issue.

To learn more about the warning signs and risk factors, and what you can do to help prevent elder abuse, click here. If you think that someone you know may be the victim of elder abuse, either physically or financially, you can help. The National Center on Elder Abuse has a help hotline, as well as a list of warning signs, and community outreach opportunities.

2010 has been anything but ordinary as far as the estate tax is concerned. First there was the unexpected repeal of the estate tax (unexpected not because the repeal was unplanned, but because nobody expected it to actually happen), then the idea that congress could reinstate the estate tax and make it effective retroactively, and now there are rumblings that certain Senators are considering a prepaid estate tax!

According to this article in the Christian Science Monitor, “News reports suggest that the Senate may soon consider restoring the estate tax with an option allowing people to prepay their tax before they die. Details are apparently still in flux as senators negotiate. We—and maybe they—don’t know yet what they’ll propose for the basic estate tax but it’s unlikely to be harsher than the 2009 version.”

If something like this gets passed, a visit to your estate planning attorney will be more important than ever, especially if you have the wealth to protect and the means to spendsome money now to save a lot of money later.

Of course, this is all just speculation right now, but even the idea of prepaid estate taxes tells us just how much the government is counting on that revenue—one way or another. If you were under any illusions that the repeal of the estate tax might turn into a permanent thing this should be more than enough to convince you that the estate tax is here to stay.

From a recent announcement on PR Newswire:

“Many Americans seem confused and immobilized by a key part of the recent Health Reform legislation, the CLASS Act, which will offer a form of long term care insurance for working people and others who may become disabled. ‘CLASS’ stands for Community Living Assistance Services and Supports, and the program, a legacy of the late Senator Edward Kennedy, is intended to offer new choice and security for millions now at risk. But, ‘we find that the public doesn’t know how to react,’ says Denise Gott, Chairman of the Board of LTC Financial Partners LLC (LTCFP), one of the nation’s most experienced long term care insurance agencies.”

The new Health Care Reform will almost surely affect your long term care plan, but is it too soon to know exactly how? You don’t want to be caught without coverage, but you also don’t want to make any decisions without having all the facts.

To help you discover how health care reform may affect your long term care plans, the link above provides access to a newly released 2010 Long Term Care Guide complete with healthcare reform update. Don’t let your family be caught off-guard.