You Can Have Your "Dark Secrets" Hidden at Your Death!" Have any embarrassing secrets you don't want others to know about if you die? Especially your family members? A firm in Japan may have the answer! It can be employed to ensure that all of a decedent's embarrassing property is disposed of before the decedent's family finds it. 

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?sid=38885794&art_id=130728&con_type=1&pp_cat=15  

Uh oh! Attorney Faces Disciplinary Action for Criticizing the Probate Process. Her blog post refers to the probate system in Illinois as the "sleazy world of probate" and the "garden variety theft, embezzlement, malpractice and malfeasance by attorneys and the court."  http://www.law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNLJ.jsp?id=1202586530125&slreturn=20130105104150 

Who knew?

$7M in gold coins found in intestate man’s garage will be auctioned at courthouse.   http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/courthouse/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter.

There's got to be a better way to store this kind of asset and pass it to heirs!

Control your "digital assets!" The widow of one of my clients recently told me that her husband had left a significant stamp collection, which he had meticulously cataloged according to rarity and estimated value. However, that information, needed to facilitate appraisal of the stamps and establish their tax basis for the family, was "safeguarded" on his personal computer, and he had died without leaving his wife his computer password! She was unable to access his computer information or his other password-protected websites and was forced to hire an expensive computer "hacker" to obtain the needed information.  The "hacker," however, adhering to law and ethics, insisted on verification that my client was legally entitled to access that information; he viewed the computer and its contents as an asset of the husband's estate. Although we were able to provide this without the need to probate the computer (!), it still indicates the need we all have to secure this information while we're alive and to make it easily available if we die. (One place to log our passwords is Section 8  (Miscellaneous Information) of the EstatePlanner Portfolio.)      

Update your estate plan! Here's an extreme example of what can happen to your estate if you don't update your planning! Sir Peter Ustinov's estate has helped improve the financial security of the legal profession! (His will, signed 36 years before his death, was declared invalid by the court.) This real-life case reminds me of the famous fictional case, Jarndyce v. Jarndyce, a fictional legal case in Dickens' novel, Bleak House, which drags on for so many generations that legal costs devour the entire estate!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9822081/Sir-Peter-Ustinovs-estate-may-be-lost-on-legal-fees-in-bitter-feud.html

Beware Of Asset Protection Scams! Worried about "asset protection?" Here's an excellent article which helps you keep the issues in perspective: http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddganos/2013/01/20/beware-of-asset-protection-scams/

From the article: From the article: "In reality, the specific way that asset prot protection/risk management should be implemented for any person will be wholly dependent on that person’s specific objectives and circumstances. The solution should attempt to integrate asset protection/risk management issues, estate planning issues, tax planning issues, etc. You should question anyone who fails to do this."

For many people, the only "source" of a potential lawsuit is injuring another at their home or by their vehicle. Note the author's inexpensive, "common sense" solution most of us can use to protect our assets: An "umbrella" policy. See your homeowners insurance agent for more details.

Applicable Exclusion Amount $5.25 Million for 2013 Deaths

Good news! The federal estate tax exemption will remain $5.25 million for individuals dying in 2013 ($10.50 million for couples).  This amount will INCREASE annually, adjusted for inflation. If you and your spouse have signed trusts with "A-B" trust provisions (assets split into "Marital and Family" trusts at the first spouse's death), and your estate is significantly below $5.25 million in value, you should call us to discuss amending your trust to remove these provisions. We'll be happy to explain the "pros and cons" of doing so. 

An Annual Estate Review Can Pay Off! One of my former clients recently died but failed to convey some of her real estate to her trust. She established her trust twelve years ago, but had not contacted us for a review in all that time!  Her property, located in California, is now subject to probate; California lawyers are quoting her heirs between $10,000 and $15,000 to do the probate. Pretty expensive compared to our office's annual review fee of $79! We can't help you if you don't contact us! 

2013 Changes in estate tax law! Congress has finally set the estate tax exemption at $5,250,000 per person, or $10,500,000 per married couple. See the following for details: http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/gift-and-estate-tax-changes-in-the-ameri-03265/

Couples who are worth less than $5,250,000, and who have "A-B" (i.e., "Marital Deduction") trusts, may need to revise their trusts to remove unnecessary estate tax provisions. Contact our office for more information and to see if you are affected by the new law.

Trivia Time: Little-Known Facts About Estate Planning | Lawyers.com - JDSupra

Trivia Time: Little-Known Facts About Estate Planning

Family Members Are More Likely to Commit Financial Elder Abuse

A recent poll has released information that the group that is most likely to commit financial elder abuse are family members of the victims. 

http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2012/09/family-members-are-more-likely-to-commit-financial-elder-abuse.html

Death Tax Exemption Extended. Good news (at least for a while...)! The U.S. House of Representatives voted Wednesday to extend the current tax code for another year. This includes keeping the estate tax, known as the death tax, at its current level of 35 percent for estates worth more than $5 million per individual and $10 million per couple. 

10 Rich Dads Who Don’t Think Their Kids Deserve Their Money. Extreme wealth challenges the owner to decide whether bequeathing it to loved ones benefits them or curses them. http://www.slate.com/slideshows/life/when-dad-is-crazy-rich-but-think-someone-else-deserves-his-money.html

Don't waste your money on identity theft protection services: One of my clients recently told me that she paid an annual fee to a company for "identity theft" protection. I referred her to this article: 
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765563429/Dont-waste-your-money-on-identity-theft-protection-services.html

Early Retirement Can Be a Killer! Excellent article at: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765576644/Dying-to-retire-Early-retirement-can-be-a-killer.html?pg=1

Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Méditation from Thaïs - YouTube

Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Méditation from Thaïs - YouTube: One of my favorite works and my favorite interpretation.

'via Blog this'

Lose big on your FACEBOOK stock purchase? Here's the investment advice your broker SHOULD have given you! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GS_pvhcI5c

Using a Home Health Agency Can Reduce Medical Costs. You're ready to go home from the hospital, but you still need treatment at home. How do you choose a home health agency to help you recover? This web site provided by Medicare can help you compare other patient’s actual experiences with home health agencies, including whether they’d recommend the agency to friends. You’ll find information about Medicare-certified home health agencies, quality of care, and the latest patient survey results. http://www.medicare.gov/homehealthcompare/About/MedicareCoverage.aspx

An Overlooked Use for a Power of Attorney. Going out of town? Need to give someone authority to make medical or other decisions for your minor (or incapacitated) children while you're away? Utah law (UCA 75-5-103) allows a parent or guardian of a minor or incapacitated person to execute a power of attorney and delegate to another person--for a period not to exceed 6 months--any of his powers regarding care, custody or property of the minor child or ward. If you need this document, please contact us; we can take information over the phone (or by mail) and mail or email the completed document to you before you leave.

Lottery Winners Pay Huge Tax! If you win a lottery, don't spend your money until you discover what taxes you owe. First, there's a minimum federal income tax rate on your winnings of 35%. Then there's state income tax. Next, if you share your winnings, you have to pay a 35% federal gift tax on any amounts you gift over $5.12 million (the current exemption amount). Finally, at death, your estate will owe additional estate taxes (55% after January 2013) on the rest.