Our Blog - Surety Matters

One way or another, someone has to close out our affairs when we die, and this person is a fiduciary, with legal obligations to carry out duties in the best interest of the estate and…
Read Moreabout Professional Fiduciary?

  Although it’s best for everyone to have an estate plan–and avoid dying “intestate”–it’s especially important for unmarried partners not to leave the distribution of assets for the law to manage. That’s because state intestacy…
Read Moreabout Unmarried Partners: Avoid Intestacy

  Most families manage to avoid the headaches and heartaches of probate disputes through careful estate planning. Absent that, diligent adherence to probate protocols, including abiding by the laws of intestacy to distribute assets can…
Read Moreabout Probate Heartache: Valid Marriage?

  Indeed, wills are a great way to designate assets for beneficiaries and appoint guardians for minor children. Estate planning experts remind us, however, that trusts can come in handy in the face of many…
Read Moreabout A Will Should Be Fine?

  At its roots, probate is simply the public process of settling debts and distributing assets upon death. If a will has been made, the designated executor handles the process in accordance with state probate…
Read Moreabout Avoiding Probate Mistakes

  What do you have? What do you want to accomplish? Who do you trust? These are the three fundamental questions an attorney helps you answer as your estate plan takes shape. While it is…
Read Moreabout Estate Planning: Three Questions

  If the last few years have taught us anything at all, it’s that stuff happens–unplanned, unforeseen stuff. While we can’t quickly undue the pandemic, economic woes or environmental disasters, we can protect assets for…
Read Moreabout Facing The Unknown: Asset Protection Trusts

  Although adding adult children to a bank account may seem like an easy hack for estate planning, attorneys point out that joint bank accounts can result in complications and unforeseen results. Here’s advice–and some…
Read Moreabout Why Not Just Have A Joint Bank Account

  Upon the death of the testator (person who made the will), the designated executor must diligently adhere to the public process of probate. Meanwhile, beneficiaries tend to wonder: what’s the delay with asset distribution?…
Read Moreabout Executing A Will: What Takes So Long?