Blog Layout
5 reasons your estate plan may need updating
On behalf of Cohen & Lombardo, P.C. • Feb 25, 2020
- Adding family members – As you have children, you will need to update your will or trust documents. Naming a guardian makes sure your children have someone to go to if you aren’t around. And if you have a life insurance policy, you may want to add your newborn as a beneficiary and possibly increase your limit.
- Losing a family member – If a beneficiary of your inheritance passes away, you may need to update your will or trust documents.
- Marriage – When you and your spouse become one unit, you may want your plans to work together. You can both create wills or trusts that leave your assets to each other. And a power of attorney or health care proxy makes sure your spouse can make decisions if you are medically incapacitated.
- Divorce – When you end a marriage, you may need to remove your former spouse from all your estate planning documents. A divorce decree may also require you to purchase a life insurance policy with your ex as a beneficiary.
- An increase in finances – If you receive an inheritance or large sum of money, your current plan may not adequately cover it. You may need more sophisticated ways to leave your assets behind without paying excessive taxes or fees.
Later life divorces come with unique challenges when it comes to asset division. Pursuing a divorce after many years of marriage is a daunting task, especially when concerns over your future finances might make you even more apprehensive. One of the common complications of asset division during such divorces involves retirement accounts and pension plans. Considering the factors that go…
A couple may choose to end their marriage for a variety of reasons. You and your partner might no longer love each other. Or perhaps infidelity crept in between you, you find it impossible to agree on financial decisions or your careers are pulling you in different directions. No matter your reasons for dissolving your marriage, you might feel betrayed,…
A divorce, no matter how amicable, is a tectonic shift in your family life. The underlying structure of the day-to-day has been altered, and even little things will change. Amidst all this, however, is one thing you do not want to see impacted: the well-being of your children. While co-parenting after a separation comes with challenges, it is certainly not…
When two New York parents decide to separate or end their marriage in divorce, they will have to make many difficult decisions about how they will continue to provide for and love their children. Some of their decisions will focus on child custody, such as where their kids will live and how the parents will make choices about raising them.…
Trusts are useful estate planning devices that allow New Yorkers to pass their property to others without the burdens and costs of having it go through probate. While it is often the case that individuals set up trusts to support themselves and their family members, from time to time estate planners wish to benefit charitable organizations through their end of…
While the topic of divorce may be familiar to readers of this New York legal blog, the specific nature of individual divorces can be very different. That is to say, the resolution of one divorce and its related family law issues may be very different than the resolution of similar topics in another divorce. The unique factors and circumstances of…
As a parent, you are biologically programmed to be protective of your child. When you are facing the prospect of dividing time with them or losing touch with them, this can be extremely scary. It is natural to feel anger and panic in this situation. However, it’s likely that these emotions will be of little help to you. Instead, you…
Intestate succession refers to the process of distributing a decedent’s estate when the decedent does not have a will. As our readers are aware, a will is an important testamentary document that provides guidance on how the assets and property of a person’s end-of-life estate should be distributed once they have passed on. While a will gives a person control…
A previous post here discussed the importance of including durable powers of attorney in the estate plans of Buffalo residents. In review, a durable power of attorney gives a named party the right to make financial decisions on the part of another person who is unable to do so due to incapacity. Incapacity can happen to anyone at any time.…
Many New York residents dream of starting their own businesses and becoming their own bosses. They may have envisioned futures in which they set their own goals, work their own schedules and enjoy their own profits. Not everyone who has these fantasies will follow through and create their own business entity, and not everyone who does will do so in…
