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Court Bonds 12.07.2024

Why Do Wills Go Through Probate?

  Unlike the assets placed in a trust, the assets left to beneficiaries in a will must pass through the public process of probate before being distributed. Although the expediency and privacy trusts allow can…
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Why Do Wills Go Through Probate?
Court Bonds 12.07.2024

When A Professional Fiduciary Makes Sense

  After making a will, setting up a trust, or putting other care and estate plans in place, most people instinctively look to relations and close friends to serve as the fiduciaries who take on…
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When A Professional Fiduciary Makes Sense
Court Bonds 11.22.2024

Statistically Speaking

Statistically Speaking Every adult should have an estate plan that attends to both their own needs in the event of a decline, and tends organizes asset distribution upon death. However, statistically speaking, it’s even more…
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Statistically Speaking
Court Bonds 11.22.2024

Wills: Coercion or Help?

  Before invalidating a will because of claims of undue influence, probate courts must decide if actual coercion led to the decisions reflected in the will. Afterall, people help each other all the time. How…
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Wills: Coercion or Help?
Court Bonds 11.01.2024

Survivor Trustee: Cognitive Continuity Clause?

  In the face of long lives and a rise in the number of people experiencing cognitive decline, some attorneys point out that incorporating a “cognitive continuity clause” in revocable trust instruments can serve as…
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Survivor Trustee: Cognitive Continuity Clause?
Court Bonds 11.01.2024

Administrator Responsibilities and Bonds

  When someone dies without a will, the local probate court typically appoints an administrator to bring the affairs of the deceased to closure. Once debts are paid, the state laws of intestacy dictate the…
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Administrator Responsibilities and Bonds
Court Bonds 11.01.2024

Supersedeas and Appeal Bonds

  Though in some jurisdictions, the terms supersedeas bond and appeal bond are used interchangeably, other jurisdictions distinguish between the terms. Generally, a supersedeas or appeal bond enables the losing party in a civil litigation…
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Supersedeas and Appeal Bonds
Court Bonds 11.01.2024

Assigning Assets To A Trust

  Designating assets to a trust is an important strategy in estate planning. Trusts can be set up to specifically address a variety of familial goals, and even to earmark funds for our own eventual…
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Assigning Assets To A Trust
Court Bonds 10.22.2024

Shifting Asset Ownership?

  Assigning assets to new owners can be a useful estate planning strategy, especially when circumstances make a speedy and private inheritance preferable. In essence, when asset ownership is effectively shifted ahead of death, the…
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Shifting Asset Ownership?