‘I Care a Lot’: Nothing Like Guardianships in Real Life
Actress Rosamund Pike is having a lot of fun promoting her movie I Care a Lot. But her career bright spot has a dark side. In her speech after winning a Golden Globe for her performance, she half-joked: “Maybe I just have to thank America’s broken legal system for making it possible to make stories […]
February Review: King, Spears, McCain, Netflix
Toward the end of each month, we like to share elder law law developments we’ve noticed over the previous couple of weeks. The February review is star-studded, which doesn’t happen very often. We also have some celeb-free tidbits for tax and estate planning and just plain getting old: The February Review of Celeb Estates Larry […]
King’s Estate: Drama Is Just Beginning
Last week, my partners Robert Fleming and Elizabeth Friman, in their weekly podcast, talked about the late great broadcaster Larry King and his hand-written will. At the time, most people thought the simple document, which gave King’s estate to his five children (and not his wife), was his entire estate plan. That was surprising, given […]
Ex-Husband Must Return Late Wife’s Retirement Savings
Dividing retirement savings in an Arizona divorce proceeding can result in confusion and inequity. Sometimes the problems don’t appear for years — or even decades. A recent Arizona appellate decision illustrates the importance of paying attention to retirement savings plan details. Sandra Brown’s (brief) marriage In 1992, Sandra S. Brown married John M. Brown. That […]
Covid Vaccine: When Deciding for Others, What’s Best?
Across the country, millions of Americans are getting the Covid vaccine. For many, deciding whether to get one is no big deal. (“It’s best for everyone, right?”) For those who are unable to weigh the risks and benefits, someone else has to step in and give consent. That might be a guardian or a health […]
Person Under Guardianship May Retain Right to Visitation
Imagine that the Arizona probate court has appointed a guardian to handle your health care, placement and other decisions. You want to see your friends and family. Do you have a right to visitation with those you choose? Let’s not bury our lede: yes, generally speaking, you probably can have the contacts you want. There […]
January Review of Elder Law: Potential Tax Changes
It may seem like New Year’s was just yesterday, but February is around the corner. This is the last Monday of the month, which is when we like to survey the elder law landscape and share items of interest from the past month. Now that there has been a shift of power in Washington, the […]
Can’t Find Original Will? That Might Not Be a Problem
Sometimes our clients misplace their original wills. They often worry whether that will cause a problem. Our usual answer: probably not — but it’s easy to fix. Let’s just redo your will, even if we don’t make any changes. Sometimes, though, the problem comes up after a death. Everyone “knows” where the original will is. […]
Disinheriting a Child Over Politics? Think About a Trust
The divisions that lead to the recent attack on the U.S. Capitol are having an effect on estate planning. It’s not surprising that family members have differing political views during this turbulent time. What is surprising: the growing number of clients who are considering disinheriting a child because of it. But disinheritance is extreme. A […]
Medicaid Reimbursement Claim Must Be Filed in Time
If a person over age 55 receives long-term care from Medicaid the state may make a claim against their estate. The Medicaid reimbursement claim may seem like a pointless thing. After all, in order to qualify for Medicaid benefits the patient must be impoverished. So why would they have a probate estate anyway? A Medicaid […]
