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Small Business Owners Require Unique Planning Strategies
Jane Austen once wrote “There will be little rubs and disappointments everywhere, and we are all apt to expect too much; but then, if one scheme of happiness fails, human nature turns to another; if the first calculation is wrong, we make a second better.” Such an (eventually) optimistic philosophy is good to have in […]
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Retirement Fantasy Turned on its Head
People used to think that retirement was a time of placidity and relaxation, a time when all of life’s big surprises were behind you and most days and years would now bring an unchanging idyllic existence… It seems unlikely that this was ever an accurate portrayal of any phase of human existence, including retirement, but […]
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A Scary Situation
A couple of days ago, one of our clients suffered an episode caused by insulin reaction. While it was scary for her family, she fortunately did not suffer any serious injury besides bumps, bruises, and some bleeding. But think of the following situation: A child paralyzed in a tragic accident; a spouse diagnosed with Parkinson’s […]
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Family Business? You Might Flip For A FLP
The Wall Street Journal says that family limited partnerships are finding renewed favor as an estate planning tool, thanks to recent tax-court decisions. In an article entitled “Covering Your Assets” Journal writer Mark Klimek asserts that despite some IRS opposition, tax court rulings in recent years have endorsed the use of FLPs when they are […]
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A Realistic Look at the Future
How are you feeling about your retirement these days? According to Chuck Jaffe’s article in MarketWatch most people’s answer to that question is not so good. According to Jaffe, Americans are losing confidence in the market’s ability to support their retirement (with good reason), and the most common reaction to this lack of confidence is […]
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Will You Leave A Gift—Or A Mess?
Do you consider yourself an organized person? It seems that when it comes to organization some people have the gift for it and some people simply don’t. If you’ve ever had (or have currently) the overwhelming job of sorting through the estate of a deceased loved one, you know how very grateful you can be […]
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The Fine Art of Informing Your Fiduciaries
At the end of the day, when all of the decisions have been made and documents have been signed, many estate planning clients still have one question: Should I tell my Fiduciaries that I’ve nominated them as executor, healthcare agent, guardian, etc; and how much should I tell them? The answer to the question is […]
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The Consequence of Silence
The second annual National Healthcare Decisions Day is coming up on April 16, and there has never been more reason to consider what your own wishes are, and especially to make those wishes known. As difficult as it may be to think about the end of your parent’s, your child’s or your own life, not […]
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The Most Important Part of Your Estate Plan
We are asked often, what is the most important component of an estate plan? This is a question that comes up a lot in an estate planning law practice, and as you might guess, different families will have different answers. The Trust: Many families feel that this is the heart of the estate plan, and […]
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Be Prepared
As an estate planning firm it is our job to keep our clients prepared for what’s coming. This means helping prepare them not only for the eventuality of death, but also for what is coming in life; retirement, the possibility of divorce, new children or grandchildren, and even taxes. Taxes especially are of great concern […]
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