Divorce is an unfortunate reality for over half of all married couples. From a legal standpoint, divorce sets changes in motion that can affect not only your life, but also your legacy. Divorce allows each person the legal right to re-marry and new children and/or step-children may come into the picture. Property division can be […]
Learn more »It’s rather astonishing when celebrities, professional athletes, and other famous or wealthy individuals do not leave a will. A will states one’s wishes as to how property is to be distributed at death, and names an executor or executors to manage the estate until its final distribution. This year’s untimely death of a famed musician […]
Learn more »Avoiding probate court can save a grieving family the time, money and frustration that come with probating the deceased’s estate. One of the most valuable estate planning tools for avoiding probate court is a revocable living trust. You can protect virtually any type of asset you own from probate costs by establishing a revocable living […]
Learn more »The Advance Directive (the “AD”) is another extremely important document to have prepared during the estate planning process along with a will, trust and a durable general power of attorney. An AD is a witnessed, written document where you give instructions regarding your preferences for treatment in the event that you become incapacitated. In addition, […]
Learn more »In Virginia, each person has the right to dictate the disposition of his or her remains, whether by cremation, interment, entombment, memorialization, or some combination thereof. Though arranging your own funeral might seem strange, it is a good way to forestall disagreements about how your body is to be treated. At first glance, it may […]
Learn more »The months following the death of a spouse can be a trying time. Already complicated family relationship issues may be further strained. Blended families can be particularly challenging. While children have no legal right to an inheritance, in the absence of a pre or post nuptial agreement a spouse has rights whether or not there […]
Learn more »Parents with a special needs child are apt to worry about the future perhaps even more so than other parents. A law passed at the end of 2014, known as the Achieving a Better Life Experience or ABLE Act, recognizes the extra and often significant costs of living with a disability. The act allows for […]
Learn more »Most of us do not have enough cash reserves to purchase our home without the assistance of a lender such as a bank or a credit union. If you own real property in Virginia that you purchased by borrowing funds from a lender, then you have most likely signed a document called a deed of […]
Learn more »There are three ways your property passes to another person in the event of your death. I use the analogy that your property will travel along one of three roads from you to some other person. The first road is what I refer to as the Road of Law. This law, called intestate succession, applies […]
Learn more »People who plan their estates generally want their offspring to enjoy each other well after the parents have passed, but nothing breaks up a family faster than leaving a legacy of hate. Deciding whether to leave grandchildren or charities a monetary bequest, and what percentage to leave each child, is relatively simple. More difficult issues […]
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