What is a Deed and Why is it Important It is a legal instrument that transfers real property from one person or entity to another. The person who transfers the property is the grantor. The recipient of the real property is the grantee. Sometimes, the property is...
A power of attorney for finance is essential to a comprehensive estate plan. So, what is it, and why is it important? As with the agent for healthcare, the trustee, and the executor, the agent under a power of attorney acts as a fiduciary. This is someone authorized...
In 1996, the United States Congress enacted the Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Its purpose was to provide guidelines for protecting patient information and privacy. HIPAA provides healthcare professionals with consistent and...
In 2020 when it appeared that the pandemic was ramping up, instead of dying out, many Americans got wise to the need for a Healthcare Directive. With so many dying from the coronavirus, it became apparent that preparing for death or incapacity was not just a concern...
It is a fiduciary relationship in which the grantor (sometimes called settlor, trustor, or trust maker) gives another party, known as the trustee, the right to hold title to property or assets for the benefit of a third party (the beneficiary). To be valid and...
Most people have heard about wills. Many people are familiar with estate planning and the documents that make up the estate plan. They hear terms like wills, trusts, healthcare directives, HIPAA Authorizations, powers of attorney, and deeds and wonder, what are they?...
A trust must be funded with trust assets to be valid and enforceable. There is no limit on the type of assets placed in a trust. A trust can be funded with a variety of assets. A trust can be funded with real property, such as residential houses, commercial property,...
Probate is the court-supervised process for distributing a deceased person’s assets, including their money and property. The operative words are “court-supervised.” There are pros and cons to probate. While lawyers often focus on probate's negative aspects,...
Having an estate plan is a smart idea for several reasons. One reason is that YOU get to decide what happens to your money and property when you die. Without a plan, the state where you live determines how your assets are distributed. And you might not like the...