Everyone wants a “simple” estate plan. But many have complicated notions about distribution of assets. We want to help you simplify your estate plan. We see many clients with fixed ideas about which assets should go to which beneficiaries. Do you have four children? Well, couldn’t you just open four accounts at different financial institutions…
Arizona is one of the forward-thinking states authorizing some sort of electronic signing of wills. So what is the status of electronic wills in the era of coronavirus concerns? Turns out it’s not yet ready for the real world. Arizona (and most of the other states at the forefront) still requires witnesses to be physically…
Like you, we are trying to stay ahead of the developing pandemic. As we explain in this COVID-19 update, we want to continue to provide services to our clients, trust beneficiaries and wards. Some of those services are essential; all of them are important. At the same time, we do not want to put anyone…
When should your trust include spendthrift trust provisions? Are they only for spendthrifts, or only for “special needs” beneficiaries? In this podcast episode, Tucson elder law attorneys Robert B. Fleming and Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman discuss limitations on trust distributions. Bottom line: spendthrift trust provisions are useful for all sorts of trust beneficiaries. They are…
Public and private offices all across the country are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Law offices are no different. But at Fleming & Curti, PLC, we are a little bit different. We have some additional considerations to cope with in deciding how to respond. Our weekly newsletters have addressed what we think clients ought to…
One of the most challenging jobs for a successor trustee or personal representative of an estate: dividing personal property among the beneficiaries or heirs. If you’re in charge of administering an estate, how do you decide which of your siblings gets the silver, who gets the antique furniture, and how you’re going to handle thousands…
Suppose you have been named as trustee of your parents’ trust, or as personal representative (executor) of your last surviving parent’s estate. You wonder: What do I do with my parent’s house? Do you sell it immediately, as is? Or can you sell it to one of your siblings? Can you buy it from the…
At the bottom of each of our newsletter and podcast entries online, we ask a survey question. The current one asks what happens if an Arizona resident dies without a will. We offer five options; we were surprised that less than 1/3 of our readers got the answer right. Our survey says … that there’s…
Is this your first visit to our office? Relax. We’re looking forward to meeting you. We mean that — we want to get to know you. What are your interests, what you dislike, and what’s important to you — those are what we are looking for. We don’t assign grades to new client visits. But…
We’re actually packing up boxes, setting up desks and moving phones and computers. Our new office address: 1745 E. River Rd, Suite 101, Tucson, AZ 85718. We’ve been updating our readers about the impending relocation of Fleming & Curti, PLC, law offices. The new space in the Joesler Village complex at the intersection of River…
You may have read about the SECURE Act, which passed Congress as part of its December, 2019, budget bill. We’ve written about it in our newsletter (more than once, in fact). Many of our clients are still having a hard time figuring out exactly what it means. The new law is confusing — and significantly…
At Fleming & Curti, PLC, we sometimes act as trustee, personal representative, agent under a power of attorney, or conservator. We charge a fee for those roles, of course. Anyone considering us should understand how we set our fiduciary fees. In this podcast episode, we talk about our fiduciary fees and how we determine an…
Many public benefits programs are “means-tested.” But what does that mean? Some programs are based on participation in an insurance model. Those include Social Security retirement benefits, Social Security disability benefits, and even survivor’s and children’s benefits. Medicare eligibility is also based on participation in the program (through employment and withholding or quarterly estimated payments).…
Adult children with disabilities may live at home with parents, or in group home or other settings. In many cases, their aging parents are key to their care, supervision and welfare. What do those aging parents need to think about to help prepare their children for the inevitable? Obviously, they need to take appropriate estate…
Do you wish you could get the relationship between taxes and trusts explained? We’re here to help. There are a number situations in which taxation of trusts can be confusing: You set up a revocable living trust. Do you have to file a tax return? Your trust became irrevocable — perhaps because of the death…
Have you figured out what to do about your passwords in your estate planning? We have some thoughts, but it is admittedly a difficult problem. Do you make a list of passwords? How do you keep that list secure? How often do you update the list? Can you just have your computer remember all the…
We are moving! Our office has, for the past quarter century, been in a lovely old craftsman-style home in downtown Tucson, Arizona. In February, 2020, we’ll relocate to the River/Campbell area, in the Joesler Village complex. We hope you’ll get a chance to see our new space. In the meantime, if you’ve ever visited our…
Every year we make New Year’s resolutions. By February we realize we’re not going to keep them. It’s hard for us to argue that you should make your own resolutions. But we do have a suggestion for you, related to your estate planning. Not “you should get in here to sign a new will” or…
When someone acts as fiduciary — as trustee, personal representative, conservator or agent under a durable power of attorney, they might want to charge for their work. How do they set their fiduciary fees, and what are the rules? In this podcast episode, we discuss fiduciary fees, and what you might reasonably expect. Necessarily we…
When we meet with a new client, we ask a lot of nosy questions. You can guess why we are so invasive, but we do want to assure you that it is more than just prurience or idle curiosity. We really do need to know about family dynamics, capabilities of your family members (or limitations),…
Are living trusts oversold? That is, do you need a trust? This basic estate planning discussion is the one we probably get asked about most often by our clients. There is much mystique about the need for and utility of revocable living trusts. Are there people who should not create one? Are there others who…
When do you need to do your special needs planning? Do you have a child who receives Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI) or Medicaid benefits? If so, you need to get working on your special needs planning. Is there someone in your family (a grandchild, a niece or nephew) receiving such benefits? You need to think…
Want to simplify the administration of your estate? Give everything away! In this week’s podcast, we discuss gifts and gift agreements you might consider. Is it really a good idea to give everything away before you die? Probably not, for most people. But giving away some things might benefit the recipient and allow you to…
When you sign a trust, you probably have a vision of how the trustee will operate. Will they continue to utilize your trusted advisors? Liquidate all your carefully-selected assets? Understand your intentions regarding distributions to your beneficiaries? You might place restrictions on your trustee to make sure they behave in accordance with your vision. Much…
In this online, digital age, do you still need to keep original documents in a secure place? Yes — though (at least in Arizona) loss of some originals — especially your trust and powers of attorney — may not be a huge problem. Join us for a discussion about which original estate planning documents you…
Medicare is a great health-care program for its participants. Most Medicare beneficiaries prefer its coverage to what they might get under Medicaid. But what about people who can’t afford the premiums for Medicare Part B (and Part D), the co-payments and the deductibles. For them, QMB and SLMB and QI might offer help. But what…
From the client’s perspective, the initial estate planning interview might seem unsettling, confusing — even a little bit frightening. How often, after all, do you settle in for a long discussion about mortality, disability and family dynamics? Our job (well, one of our jobs) is to make the interview helpful, productive and even relaxing. When…
The initial client interview with your new lawyer can be a daunting experience. We are not actually very intimidating, but clients often feel a little overwhelmed by that first interview. We’d like to put you at ease. Want to know what we’re looking for in the interview? We want to get to know you a…
Good for you! You signed your will and powers of attorney! Maybe you even finalized your living trust, and transferred all (or most) of your assets into the trust’s name. You’re done, right? You never have to update your estate plan again, right? Wrong. Of course. But how soon do we want to see you…
We are SO pleased to announce that Jacque Mingle, partner here at Fleming & Curti, PLC, just learned that she has been certified as a specialist in Estate and Trust law by the State Bar of Arizona. We’re very happy for and proud of her. Join us for this podcast episode to hear Jacque explain…
Here’s an important part of your estate plan that you may not know about: personal property lists. In Arizona (and a number of other states — talk to your local attorney) your will can make specific reference to a list of personal property items and who should receive them. It’s a great device to handle…
In 2014, the federal government allowed states to establish ABLE Act accounts. Do you understand who they are for and when you might want to explore the idea further? In this week’s podcast episode, we discuss ABLE Act accounts in Arizona. The accounts were first permitted under the federal Achieving a Better Life Experience Act…
The last in our series of podcasts on selecting a fiduciary. Should you consider our firm, Fleming & Curti, as fiduciary? We started this cycle with a general discussion: what does “fiduciary” mean, anyway? And how do you select a successor trustee, personal representative or agent for your powers of attorney? If you don’t think…
Choosing your fiduciary can be challenging. Even understanding the duties and challenges facing your fiduciary can be difficult. Sometimes you need to consider professional fiduciaries. What is a professional fiduciary? In Arizona and some other states, there is an industry of professional fiduciaries. Some have legal backgrounds, some social service or financial backgrounds. One of…
One of the most difficult tasks connected with your estate plan is too easily overlooked. Choosing your fiduciary should be more than just naming your oldest child, or all of your children. Being a fiduciary is actually hard work. You should pay attention to which potential fiduciary is actually up to the task. In last…
You may have heard or read the term: fiduciary. But what is a fiduciary? In this podcast episode, we go through some of the kinds of relationships that are included. The term covers at least these: A conservator of a living person’s estate (which can sometimes include someone acting as if they were the conservator,…
Everyone seems to know about gifts and gift tax rules. The thing is, “everyone” tends to be wrong. In this podcast episode, we explain the basics of gifts and gift tax liability. Do you think that there is a rule limiting how much money or property you can give away? There isn’t. Do you think…
Perhaps you have created a revocable living trust. Likely, you have named yourself as trustee, with a carefully-selected successor trustee. But should you consider having your living trust include co-trustees? Maybe you already have co-trustees — you and your spouse, perhaps. Then the question is slightly different: should you “promote” your successor trustee to serve…
You’re already thinking about your estate planning. Perhaps it’s time to update your five-year-old will and/or trust. Maybe you’ve never gotten around to taking care of this grown-up task. But in any case: have you dealt with your pets in your estate planning? Many of our clients have strong attachments to their pets. Many assume…
Third-party SNTs (special needs trusts) are complicated to understand. Part of the confusion arises from the similarity of names. Self-settled (or first-party) special needs trusts are very different animals, but the similarity of names adds to the problem. In this podcast episode, we try to demystify some of the issues around third-party SNTs. Join us…
How frequent do you think will contests are? If you’re like most people, you almost certainly overestimate the frequency of probate, and only a small portion of those cases involve contested proceedings. It’s difficult to succeed with a will contest. We talk about some of the issues. There are reasons will contests are so rare…
A close family member has died, and you are in charge of administering personal property of the estate. How do you handle the challenge? If your family member left a will, it might give you some direction. Many wills (in Arizona, at least) take advantage of the ability to make a list of personal items…
Your personal property is just, well, property. That means that if your will says (paraphrasing) “I leave all my stuff to my mother” that will include those personal effects. But consider what will actually happen to your furniture, your Moon Audio setup, even your car. And what about family antiques and your personal collectibles? Technically,…
Your estate plan usually includes a will, a health care power of attorney and a financial power of attorney. It might also include at least one trust — perhaps more if you have a child with special needs, or a complicated financial situation. Which is your most important document? You might also have partnership agreements,…
We’ve written — and talked — about different types of special needs trusts over the past week. One term that we frequently hear is about “supplemental benefits” trusts. Are they same thing as special needs trusts? Are they even recognized in Arizona? In this week’s podcast, we try to demystify the supplemental benefits trust. Join…
There are different types of special needs trusts. That should not be surprising — but the effect sometimes is. Besides that, the differences can generate plenty of confusion. Host Robert Fleming and guest Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman, partners in the Tucson elder law firm of Fleming & Curti, PLC, discuss the differences and some of…
In earlier podcasts, we have discussed why you might want to create an irrevocable estate plan, and how you might go about it. This time our focus is different: can you modify your irrevocable estate plan? Perhaps you and your first spouse set up a plan a decade or two ago, shortly before your spouse…
You might want to make your estate plan irrevocable. Why? We discussed that in last week’s podcast. It might be because you want to make sure your spouse can’t change things after your death. Perhaps you don’t trust yourself not to be swayed by hopeful relatives or acquaintances. But for this podcast episode, let’s discuss…
Our clients often ask about making their estate plans irrevocable. Before we describe steps we might recommend, we want to understand why you think it’s important. In this podcast session, we discuss the reasons clients tell us they want an irrevocable estate plan. Later, we’ll talk about some of the choices we typically present to…
Suppose you have been appointed as your mother’s guardian in the Arizona courts. Now you (and your mother) will be moving to another state. Is there such a thing as an interstate guardianship? Can you transfer your Arizona guardianship to the new state? Conversely, suppose that you have been appointed as your adult son’s guardian…
In our Elder Law Issues newsletter this week, we described a bankruptcy court case involving a Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) account. Arizona has also adopted the uniform law, and Arizona UTMA accounts would likely be treated in the same way. But, more importantly, when would someone want to set up an Arizona UTMA…
Do you enjoy do-it-yourself projects? How about your estate planning? Can’t you just write your own will? How about online trust forms? And wouldn’t it be cheaper if you just prepared your estate planning documents and then paid a lawyer to review them for you? In this podcast episode, we talk about DIY estate planning.…
Guardianship, conservatorship, power of attorney, living will, surrogate decision-maker — what does it all mean? We talk about guardianship and conservatorship. Join us as we define some of the terms and introduce you to the basics of surrogate decision-making. As always, of course, we are talking about Arizona law. Some of the terms are different…
For your estate planning to work, you need to coordinate your beneficiary designations. Did you name the right beneficiaries on your life insurance, your IRAs and retirement plans, and your bank and brokerage accounts? Did you know that you can also name beneficiaries for your real estate (at least in Arizona) and your vehicles? Beneficiary…
Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman and Jacquelyne J. Mingle are now partners in the law firm of Fleming & Curti, PLC. What does that mean for the future of the firm? Will the name change? And what about the possibility that partner Thomas A. Curti might actually be retiring — is there truth to that rumor?…