Clients often ask how to make their estate plan irrevocable. In most (but not all) cases, the question comes from a married couple — often in a second or later marriage, and with children from earlier marriages. The actual question one spouse asks: how can I be sure that my spouse can’t change our estate…
FEBRUARY 20, 2017 VOLUME 24 NUMBER 8 Here’s a basic rule, applicable in every U.S. state: wills need to be in writing. But what about a promise to write a will, or to leave a particular item to a particular person? Unsurprisingly, those promises usually have to be in writing, too. Jim’s Story Take Jim…
AUGUST 17, 2015 VOLUME 22 NUMBER 30 We frequently see clients in second (or even third or fourth) marriages, with children from prior relationships. When we discuss how their assets should be distributed, they can usually give us a quick summary. Their plans vary, but they often fit into one of these models: Maybe the…
NOVEMBER 12, 2012 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 41 A prospective client asks: “Can my mother cut me out of her will after my father dies? His will leaves everything to the children after her death.” That deceptively simple question comes in a number of variations (like: “My mother’s will left everything to her children, but her…
AUGUST 20, 2012 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 32 Imagine this scenario: you and your spouse have been married for thirty years, and it is a second marriage for both of you. Each of you brought children to the marriage (your two and your spouse’s three), and all five kids were raised together from their teens as…
MAY 7, 2012 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 18 We have written about contracts to make (or not to revoke) a will before. The question comes up infrequently, and usually only in a handful of ways: can you and your spouse make an enforceable agreement that you will leave your respective estates to, say, your children no…
OCTOBER 17, 2011 VOLUME 18 NUMBER 36 John and Marsha, contemplating marriage, want to enter into an agreement spelling out what will happen to their separate and community property if they later divorce, or when one of them dies. Or perhaps John and Marsha have been married for years, but are contemplating separation and maybe…
JULY 26, 2010 VOLUME 17, NUMBER 23 Imagine a couple, each married for the second time. Perhaps each has children from a first marriage. Perhaps the couple has been married for years — even decades. They think of all the children as “their” children, even though they fully understand that the other spouse’s children are…