Pennsylvania Estate Planning, Trust, and Executor and Probate Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

If you are interested in gifting stocks, bonds, money, real estate, business interests or other assets to one or more children or grandchildren then you are on the right page.  The rules about gifting change just about every year.

Here is the new information.  However, gifting can be more complicated than you might think.   For example, there are different rules for gift taxes than there are for the nursing home rules under Medicaid.  So use the information here as a guide and get good information from an estate and gift tax adviser based on your personal and specific information.

Gifting in 2020:

Annual gift tax exclusion - inflation adjusted to $15,000.00 per person. This amount can be given to a child, grandchild and or their spouses.

Furthermore, if you are married, each spouse can gift this amount to each desired recipient.

This means that a married couple can together gift $30,000.000 per year.

If one spouse has greater assets be sure to ask your adviser about split gifts and whether or not you need to file a 709 gift tax return.

Lifetime Exclusion (unified credit): In addition to the annual gift tax exclusion, each person now also has a $11.58 million dollar lifetime credit which can be used to make gifts to children and grandchildren and/or their spouses.

You will be required to file a 709 gift tax return when making gifts larger than the $15,000.00 per year annual gift tax amount but you can use your lifetime credit.

NOTE:  Gifts of hard to value assets such as real estate or business interests may require not only a gift tax return but an appraisal.

If you are considering a lifetime gift, you may require the advice of legal counsel.

However, gifting can radically reduce taxes in certain circumstances and may also need to be coordinated with changes in your wills, trusts, and beneficiary designations.  The advice of counsel can therefore be both valuable and can save you and your heirs from later problems that might cost much more to correct.

David M. Frees III, JD

610-933-8069

 

 

Answer: The best way to find advisers such as an estate planning attorney and a financial planner is to ask friends and family that you trust AND who are financially similarly situated. Remember, your parents will need advisers in the state where they reside. If friends or family are unable to recommend an attorney and a financial planner, another source for leads and information is the internet. You should look at websites created by firms that practice in these areas of law. Look for videos, reports, testimonials or other inclinations of client satisfaction and experience. Third party ratings by avvo.com are also useful.

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

 

Answer:  Again, the best way to find a lawyer who concentrates in elder law is by asking close friends, family, or relatives in the same state where your parents reside.

If friends or family are unable to recommend an attorney the internet is a good source of information and ratings. You should look at websites created by firms that practice in these areas of law.  

Look for videos, reports, testimonials or other inclinations of client satisfaction and experience. Third party ratings by avvo.com are also useful.

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

Answer: There are two or three different types of advisers you can look to for advice when trying to help assess, revise, or update your elderly parents’ estate and trust planning. 

The first type of adviser you can seek is an estate planning attorney with elder or senior law experience.  The estate planning attorney will be able to suggest documents which they feel would best protect your elderly parents in their current financial situation and/or to achieve their own estate planning goals.  An estate planning attorney should be well-versed in the state laws.

The second type of consultant that you can seek advice from is a financial planner. In some situations, it may be a good idea to have both an estate planning attorney and financial planner working together as a team.

A financial planner and estate planning attorney will be able to work together to create a plan that is best suited for your parents’ current affairs and to achieve their short term and long term goals (such as asset protection for the family). The financial planner will be able to assess your parents’ current financial status and then suggest long-term plan that would allow them to have money for the remainder of their life. The financial planner should be certified in the state in which your parents currently reside. 

For clients who have exclusive life or long term disability needs it might be beneficial to involve an insurance adviser in this process.

Finally, involving your parents' CPA or tax adviser can be important.

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

Answer:  Yes, it is possible to do it through Legal Zoom or other on-line services to achieve a "do it yourself result".  But, this area of the law is complicated and you and your elderly parents might need and benefit from the help of an attorney to make sure their elder law estate planning documents are set up properly. Also, because of the complexity of elder law issues, tax laws, and Medicaid’s look back rule which limits gifting it is important to consider the help of an attorney. As you conduct your own research you may realize that estate and elder law planning has a language of its own.  Therefore, you may not fully understand the meaning or importance of each clause in a document. 

If you do not have your parents’ estate planning documents drafted or executed correctly the court can determine that the documents are not valid. Furthermore, the IRS or the state can also determine that documents such as trusts are not designated to achieve tax nursing home protection goals leaving you or your parents to pay a large sum of money in taxes or to a care facility.  If your parents’ documents are not valid, the court will be able to distribute their assets according to law and not according to their wishes. 

When trying to find an estate planning attorney, he/she should be licensed to practice within the state in which your elderly parents currently reside and should have elder or senior law experience. Each state has its own estate planning laws. Therefore, it may be highly beneficial for you to work with an attorney who lives and practices in the same state as your elderly parents. Furthermore, you want to find an attorney or law firm which focuses its practiction in these areas.

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

Answer: The very first thing you should do, if it is possible and comfortable for them, is to encourage them to discuss their current financial status. You would want to discuss bank accounts, mortgages, loans, credit card accounts, life insurance policies, and ownership documents regarding houses, cars, and other assets.  We often take it for granted that our parents are financially savvy only to discover that they are in difficult financial circumstances. Once you have received this information you will be able to know how you are going to be able to care for your parents long-term. It is a good idea that once you have discussed these topics that you then seek the advice of an attorney and in some cases a financial or life insurance planner. This will ensure that you are able to set up a financial plan that would secure your parents for the remainder of their lives. Talking with an attorney and financial planner is important because many different choices will need to be made as your parents continue to age. 

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

Answer: The five most important legal documents that your parents should have or consider in place are 1) wills, 2) general durable powers of attorney, 3) medical powers of attorney, 4) and living wills. In some cases they might also need or benefit from a 5) revocable or irrevocable trust (including a nursing home asset protection trust).

A will states how your parents wish that their assets including real property should be distributed upon their death. A will can also include specific gifts that your parents wanted to give to loved ones once they have passed away such as gifts of money, or personal property.

Your parents should also do a careful review of beneficiary designations under 401(k)’s, 403(b)’s, and life insurance policies to make sure that they do not conflict with the will or other estate planning documents. 

 A general durable power of attorney appoints one or more agents to take care of your parents’ finances once they are no longer capable of doing so.

A medical power of attorney also appoints one or more agents to make medical decisions on behalf of your parents when they are no longer able to do so. These decisions are typically guided by a living will (see below).

A living will states your elderly parents’ wishes regarding what type of medical treatment they would want to receive in the event that they become permanently unconscious with no reasonable expectation of the recovery or they are terminal and can no longer make these decisions. 

Revocable and irrevocable trusts can be used to: 1. Avoid probate, and 2. Shelter or protect assets from a nursing home (this is a very special irrevocable trust).

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

 

Answer: There are three key issues that you want to focus on when discussing elder or senior law issues with elderly parents.  The three areas are 1) financial decision making, 2) medical decision making, and 3) estate planning.

Financial Decision Making. In this disucssion you should get your parents to consider who would be given the authority to take care of their finances if they were no longer capable of doing so. This would typically include bill paying and investment decisions.

Medical Decisions Making. Be sure to have your parents consider giving this power to one another and to one or more substitutes so that decisions can be made when they are no longer able to.

 Estate Planning.Your elderly parents should have up to date estate planning documents (including will and in some cases trusts) which clearly state their wishes as to what should happen with their assets upon death.  These should also be coordinated with the beneficiary designations on life insurance, IRA's, and other assets.

Lastly, proper estate planning documents can minimize taxes and the probate process, which ultimately will save significant amounts of time, money, and frustration.

Please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

Answer: This conversation can be either very easy or very difficult depending on your family dynamic. For children from families that have been very open and honest regarding the family’s financial and legal situation it is easy. For others, starting the conversation may be difficult if your parents never openly discussed their financial and legal matters.  But, failing to have this discussion is a recipe for disaster.

 If your family has not openly discussed these issues, one way to try and start the conversation is to start talking about your own concerns planning and and issues. If you have recently updated your own estate or financial planning, you can start off by generally talking about wills, powers of attorney, living wills, and even trusts that you have considered and the advantages of each.

You can express concerns you have regarding emergencies both medical and financial that may happen as your parents grow older. By starting the conversation out generally it encourages your parents to open up and share with you their wishes or plans for the future. You can also emphasize that by doing your own estate planning you realized that you may not really know or understand their personal concerns and wishes.

In some situations, parents really do not want their children to have any idea of their financial and legal status, and will not discuss the topic at all. If you find yourself in this situation with your parents, it may be best to hire a counselor or lawyer to try and get the conversation started. Your parents may be more inclined to talk about these issues in the presence of an uninvolved third party.

However, if the attorney truly represents your parents then there might be significant limitations on information that may be discussed with you. Be sure to discuss these ethical issues with the attorney in advance.

Please contact David M. Frees, III  at [email protected] or call us at 888-573-7407 regarding your elder law questions.

If Your Estate is in Debt, What Expenses Need to be Paid First?

If an estate is considered to be insolvent it means that the estate does not have enough assets to pay off debts, claims, and other administrative expenses. When this happens, Pennsylvania law provides an order in which expenses, taxes, and claims that must be paid and which have priority.

1.    The first expense that needs to be paid off is administration costs.

2.     Secondly, the family tax exemption needs to be paid.  This exemption includes spouses, children, parents, or any other person living with the decedent during the time of death. 

3.    The third category that needs to be paid is any funeral or burial expenses. During this time, any medical services; including hospital visits, nursing home costs, or the cost of any medicine, that the descendant was receiving at the time of his death needs to be paid.

Note: there is a difference in priority of medical expenses depending on when they were incurred. 

4.    The fourth set of expenses that the executor needs to pay is the cost of the grave marker. 

5.    The fifth cost that an executor needs to acknowledge is cost regarding the rent for the occupancy of the decedent’s residence. 

6.    Next, any claims made by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any subdivisions of the Commonwealth need to be addressed.

7.    Finally, any other claims that have been brought against the descendant. 

It is important to know that there is no priority of claims if they are in the same level of priority. And, this list is general. If assets are insufficient to pay the decedent’s bills and expenses you as executor should get legal and accounting advice to avoid personal liability.

For more information regarding claims against an estate please email or call David M. Frees, III at [email protected] or 888-573-7407.

How Will Your Estate or Trust Administration Be
Affected By This New Surtax?

The Affordable Care Act has been upheld by The Supreme Court.
This has confirmed that trusts and estates will in fact be subject
to the additional 3.8% Medicare Surtax in 2013. This particular
act has been put into place to try and help reform and finance
healthcare. The 3.8% surtax will be applied to certain types of
investment income. For example, dividends, taxable interests,
capital gains, annuities, royalties, and rental income. Therefore,
if your net investment income exceeds the threshold for the
highest bracket (which is $12,000) the Medicare surtax will be
applied. It is important to remember that this Medicare surtax is
an addition to the federal and state tax that an estate must
already pay. 

 This raises issues for executors and trustees about whether or
not they should distribute income to tax payers
(who might be at a lower rate). This can be a complicated question
so to avoid personal liability, an executor or trustee should get
legal advice ( about what the trust permits) AND tax
advice (about key saving strategies). 

For more information regarding the tax changes in 2013, 
please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected] 
or call 888-573-7407.

 

A “beneficiary” is a person or legal entity you have
chosen to receive the value of an estate, trust,
retirement plans, or insurance policies. 

There are two basic types of beneficiaries.
The first is a primary beneficiary. A primary beneficiary
is the first person or entity to receive proceeds from an estate.
If there is more than one person or entity listed as a primary beneficiary
the profits will be divided equally or according to the percentages
you selected. The second type of beneficiary is a contingent beneficiary.
If there were no living primary beneficiaries, a contingent or secondary
beneficiary would then receive the remaining assets of an estate.
If there are no contingent beneficiaries, be sure to ask how the funds 
will be distributed. In the case of an IRA, 401(k), or other retirement accounts,
having them default to a will or estate might be desirable. So spend 
some time thinking about your beneficiaries and consider
the following information.

 Before designating a beneficiary it is important to know who can be named.
Some examples of who can be designated as a beneficiary are,
spouses, parents, children (who are over the age of 18), trusts,
estates, friends, charities, organizations, churches, or even universities.
When you do name a beneficiary be specific as possible to try and
eliminate any question regarding the identity of a particular beneficiary. 

 Once beneficiaries of your insurance and other accounts have
been designated, it is important to keep the designations up to date.
If there are changes to estate planning documents, retirement plans,
or insurance policies beneficiary changes might also be necessary.
This typically happens when major life changes happen such as marriage,
divorce, death, retirement, major financial changes, and/or changes
in estate tax or laws.

It is therefore important to review these designations
AND how they work with your will, trust, and estate planning
documents on a regular basis.

For more information regarding designating and updating beneficiaries,
and estate planning. Please contact David M. Frees, III at
[email protected] or call 888-573-7407.

 

Answer: This conversation can be either very easy very or difficult depending on your family dynamic. Children from families that have been very open and honest regarding the family’s financial and legal situation it is easy. For others, starting the conversation will be difficult if your parents never openly discussed their financial and legal matters. 

If your family has not openly discussed these issues, one way to try and start the conversation is to start talking about your own
concerns and issues. If you have recently updated your own estate or financial planning, you can start off by generally talking about wills, powers of attorney, living wills, and even trusts that you have considered and the advantages of each. You can express concerns you have regarding emergencies both medically and financially that may happen as your parents grow older. By starting the conversation out generally it encourages your parents to open up and share with you their wishes or plans for the future. You can also emphasize that by doing your own estate planning you realized that you may not really know or understand their concerns and wishes.

In some situations, parents really do not want their children to have any idea of their financial and legal status, and will not discuss the topic at all. If you find yourself in this situation with your parents, it may be best to hire a counselor or lawyer to try and get the 
conversation started. Your parents may be more inclined to talk about these issues in the presence of an uninvolved third party.

However, if the attorney truly represents your parents then there might be significant limitations on information that may pertain to you.  

Be sure to discuss these ethical issues with the attorney in advance.

How to Determine Jurisdiction for An Incapacitated Person?

Typical Scenario: Bridget lives in Maryland. Grandparents of Bridget,
Joe and Josephine live in Pennsylvania during the summer months.
however, during the winter months, Joe and Josephine migrate to Florida
to enjoy the warm weather. Josephine has been diagnosed with early stages
of Alzheimer’s leaving Joe to be the primary care taker. He suddenly passes
away while the couple is living in Florida for the winter months. Bridget decides
to go to Florida to spend time with her grandmother. She realizes that Josephine
is no longer able to care for herself and would like to file for guardianship.
Where does she file and what court has jurisdiction? 

Bridget is now unclear as to where the guardianship proceedings should
take place because she does not know which state has proper jurisdiction.
Bridget’s choices of possible jurisdiction are Pennsylvania
(her grandparents’ primary home), Maryland (her primary home), or
Florida(her grandparents’ vacation home) . To try and solve issue of the
jurisdiction over adult guardianship, many states have adopted the
Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act.

This Act specifically states which court has proper jurisdiction in order
to appoint a guardian for an incapacitated person. Primary jurisdiction is
determined by the “home state” of the individual. This means the state in
which the individual lived for at least the past six months. If this could not
be determined, the next court that would have appropriate jurisdiction is
decided by where the incapacitated person had “significant connection”. 

Significant connection to a state would be considered as having family members,
owning assets in that state, maintaining social relationships, or having a
voting address in a particular state.  Lastly, if the incapacitated person 
did not have a home state or did not have a significant connection,
another court could claim jurisdiction.

As a result, in our situation above, Pennsylvania would have proper jurisdiction.
The reason that Pennsylvania has primary jurisdiction is because
Pennsylvania is considered JoAnn’s home state.

 For more information regarding, adult or child guardianship
please contact David M. Frees, III at [email protected]
or call 888-573-7407

What Is A Last Will and Testament?

Executing a last will and testament is not something
that should be put off or avoided even though it can be a
hard topic to discuss. If a person dies without a will the
state will decide what will happen to their assets. When a
person dies without a will it is known as intestate succession.
Typically, an individual’s spouse or children would receive the
assets first. If an individual does not have a spouse or any children,
the closest living relatives would then receive the assets.
In order to avoid intestate succession, a last will and testament
should be created stating what should happen to the
assets in the event of a death.

Some individuals have chosen created a holographic will as
their last will and testament. A holographic will is a handwritten will.
Holographic wills are not accepted in every state because it is
hard to prove its authenticity. Therefore, holographic wills are generally
not recommended. As a result, having a will and estate attorney
draft a last will and testament along with other important estate
planning documents is the best way to secure an individual’s assets. 

A last will and testament specifies what should happen with an
estate once an individual passes away. This document states who
should look after any children that have survived the decedent,
how properties should be divided, who should be in charge of
administrating the estate, and any specific gifts that the decedent
wanted to give to loved ones.

In order to properly execute a last will and testament,
you must be of sound mind. This means that the individual
must have a clear understanding of the documents in which
they are signing. The individual must be acting on their own free
will without undue influence from others.  Lastly, the will must
be signed, witnessed, and notarized in accordance with state laws.

Once a last will and testament is executed, the will
should be stored in a safe location. There are many different locations
in which an individual can choose to store their original will.
One option is to keep the last will and testament at the law firm
where it was originally drafted. The law firm would store the will in a
fire-proof safe where it could not be destroyed or damaged.
Another option is to keep the last will and testament in a
safe deposit box. An individual can also decide to store their
will inside their own home. A last will and testament should be
stored in a fire-proof or water-proof safe within a residence.
This way if there is a flood or fire the estate planning
documents will not be destroyed or damaged. 

 A last will and testament along with other estate planning
documents should be periodically reviewed by an estate planning
attorney. It is important to update or change estate planning
documents when major events happen within a lifetime.
For example, marriage, divorce, death, birth of children or
grandchildren, major financial changes, or major law changes.
It is recommended that estate planning documents be updated
every five to seven years. Once changes have been made
and executed, the previous will is revoked and is no longer valid.

Please click the links, for more information regardinging living wills 
and revocable living trusts.

For more information regarding last wills and testament along
with other estate planning documents
please contact David M. Frees, III at 888-573-7407.

What Is A Living Will?

    After creating a last will and testament, another important
legal document that should be discussed is a living will.
As technology continues to advance, the ability to keep people
alive by using various life support systems is also increasing.
Every individual has the right to decide whether or not they want
to be kept alive by life support. A living will explains the wishes
of an individual in the event they become incapacitated and there
is no reasonable chance of recovery of normal brain function.
Whether it is your wish to remain on life support or to abstain
from life support, it is important to put your wishes into writing.

    The living will outlines specific medical instructions that should
be followed once an individual reaches a state where they are no
longer able to convey or communicate their wishes to others.
For instance, a living will would come into effect if an individual
falls into an irreversible coma or a vegetative state. Additionally,
a living will specifies what types of treatment an individual wishes
to receive once they become incapacitated with no chance of
recovery. For example, the living will will request or decline
cardiac resuscitation, mechanical respiration, artificial nutrition,
blood products, and kidney dialysis, in such circumstances.  

A power of attorney or agent can also be listed in a living will
or in a separate medical power of attorney. The agent that is
chosen should be trusted to make important medical decisions
when you no longer can. This agent will be able to give consent or
withhold consent regarding various types of care that were not listed
in the living will or in circumstances where the decisions your made
are unclear. As a result, it is important to clearly convey what is to
happen in the event you become incapacitated with no chance of recovery.
Lastly, the agent would use their best judgment as to when they
feel it is time to release the living will to the doctors. 

Once a living will is filled out, it is important to have it witnessed by at
least two different witnesses. In many states the living will must
also be notarized. These witnesses need to be of sound
mind and body. Being of sound mind and body is important in the
event the witnesses have to testify in court. Furthermore, the
witnesses should be independent and unrelated parties and should
not have any personal benefit from the document. 

Lastly, a living will can be changed or revoked at any time.
It is important to review or update a living will when other
estate planning documents are being updated. A living will
should be reviewed and updated every five to seven years.

Please click the links, for more information regarding 
last wills and testaments or revocable living trusts.

For more information regarding living wills and
other estate planning documents please contact
David M. Frees, III at 888-573-7407.

 

What Is A Revocable Living Trust?

A living trust is a trust that is created while an
individual (known as a “settlor” or “grantor”) is still living.
This declaration or agreement of trust includes names of
trustees, beneficiaries, describes investment assets and
properties held by the trust, and provides the terms of the
trust and how money is to be invested and distributed.
This trust arrangement allows one or more people to manage
or control property for someone else’s benefit. A living trust allows
an individual, while they are still living, to transfer the title of
their property to the trustee of the living trust. Once the transfer is
complete the trustee would then be the owner of the property.
So, as long as the trust is a revocable trust, the grantor or settlor
can be the trustee of his or her own trust.

Many times individuals do not understand the difference between
a last will and testament and a living trust since they both deal with
the distribution of property and assets. The first difference is that a
living trust can provide more privacy then a last will and testament.
The reason for this is that a living trust does not have to be submitted
to probate court(unless challenged). Therefore, the details of an estate
are more private. A last will and testament has to be submitted to
probate court, making it a public document. Another major difference is
that a living trust limits the involvement of probate court when distributing
property. However, many states are regulating such distributions
more and more.

There are many other benefits to creating a living trust. By creating a
living trust all assets including real estate can be managed and controlled
as a single unit. As a result, this allows for efficient distribution of assets
and property upon death. A living trust permits beneficiaries avoid the
probate process. The probate process in some states can be extremely
expensive and last for more than two years. Moreover, the probate process
can be more costly. Therefore, creating a living trust can be very cost
efficient when trying to avoid the probate process. In some states, assets
in a trust cannot be reached by a state’s estate recovery program where
assets passing under a will can be claimed. 

In order to take full advantage of the benefits of a living trust property
must be transferred into the trust prior to death. The individual who transfers
the property is known as the “grantor”. The living trust that is created would
then be considered the “grantee”. It is important to transfer the most valuable
property into the living trust. This may include, a primary residence, business
real estate, money market accounts, stocks and bonds, valuable collections,
and expensive jewelry.

As previously stated, the creator of the living trust will name the beneficiaries.
There are three different types of living trusts beneficiaries. The three
types are specific beneficiaries, primary beneficiaries, and
alternate beneficiaries. Specific beneficiaries are the individuals who
receive specific property (such as a watch, clock, or piece of real estate).
Primary beneficiaries are individuals that receive any property that is not
explicitly distributed to the specific beneficiaries. Lastly, alternate
beneficiaries are individuals who receive any property in the event that
the primary beneficiaries died before the creator of the living trust.
Overall, the creator of the living trust is able to choose any person
they wish as beneficiaries of their living trust.

Lastly, a revocable living trust should be reviewed or altered if your 
financial or life situation dramatically changes. This could mean
purchasing a business or a new piece of real estate. In accordance
with all other estate planning documents, a living trust should be
reviewed and updated every five to seven years.

Please click the links, for more information regarding last wills
and testament and living trusts.

For more information regarding revocable living trusts and
other estate planning documents please
contact David M. Frees, III at 888-573-7407.

How To Choose A Safe Place To Store Your Will.

Once the process of executing your will is completed,
the final and most important decision you have to make
is where to store you will. There is only one original will,
therefore it is very important to store it in a safe location
where an executor can easily locate the will for
probate and/or the distribution of your estate. 

1.    Your Attorney’s Office 
The first place a will can be stored is at yourattorney’s office.
This could be a good option if you are planning on staying with
the attorney for a longperiod of time. The executor of your will
would need tobe informed of the name and location of the
attorney’s office.The attorney’s office would just need proof of
death beforereleasing the original will. The decision to store an
original will at an attorney’s office is safe and easy.

2.    In Your Safe Deposit Box
Another safe, if not the safest place to keep your original will is
in your safe deposit box. Some people may argue that even
though a safe deposit box is the safest place for your will it is
not the easiest place to store it. In Pennsylvania, the executor
is now required to give notice of the inventory by documenting
the contents found within the safe deposit box. Then the executor
needs to confirm that the state has been notified of the contents
within the safe deposit box. There is a process involved for the
executor of a will in order to obtain the will, but it is only for your
protection making it a very safe place to store a will. And, the will
is made quickly available to your executor. In any case,
make sure that your executor knows where it is stored and
the location of the safe deposit box or the safe deposit box key.

3.    In a Fire-proof Safe in Your Home
 One of the most common places to store a will is in your own home.
This option appeals to many people because they want to be
able to store all of their important documents together
in one place. However, simply storing a will in a regular
filing cabinet or drawer is not a safe or smart option because
of natural disasters such as flooding or fires.  Therefore,
keeping a will in a fire-proof or water-proof safe is the best option
if you are considering keeping a will in your residence. 

Overall, there are many different places that a will can be safely stored.
A will should be stored in a safe location where it cannot be effortlessly
obtained by the wrong people or easily destroyed. Furthermore,
it is important that the executor knows where and how to obtain
the document in the event of your death.

For more information regarding Estate Planning Documents please
contact Unruh, Turner, Burke & Frees at 888-573-7407.

How To Gain Access Of A Decedents Online Accounts
and Why That is More Important Than Ever Before.

The idea of going paperless continues to spread across
the United States. More and more individuals have email accounts,
use social media, and pay various bills all online. However, lawmakers
have not caught up to the trend of “going green” or being digitally social,
which leaves surviving loved ones struggling to gain access to these 
various online accounts. Many estate policies of online accounts often 
grant loved ones access to the decedent’s online accounts,
but privacy laws prevent this from actually happening. 

    To try and combat this problem some individuals have
started to keep a log of their online usernames and passwords.
There are also various services such as mSecure, SecureSafe,
and LegacyLocker that individuals are using to keep all their online
information in one secure location. Therefore, upon the death of the individual,
a family member would be able to access the usernames and passwords
for their online accounts without any practical trouble. Overall,
keeping a log or using a password safety service seems to be the most
practical way to avoid being locked out of a decedent’s online accounts. 

And some state laws specifically authorize executors or trustees
to have such access. However, if a log or memo is not left behind,
family members of a decedent have no choice but to follow online
guidelines set forth by each individual company or state law.
These guidelines can be stringent making it difficult to follow and gain
access to the online accounts. For instance, many companies require
a court order in order to gain access and other pertinent information
regarding the account.

 Listed below is information regarding how major online 
companies control the access of decedent’s accounts:
1.    Google:
a.    Will not disclose any passwords on a decedent’s account.
b.    Will not deactivate a decedent’s account without having a court order.
c.    It will however, provide information to loved ones if Google
receives proof of death, i.e. death certificate, or court order.

2.    Facebook:
a.    Facebook will not disclose any passwords.
b.    Will deactivate and remove an account upon a family’s request.
c.    If notified, Facebook will “memorialize” an account.  This means
that friends will still be able to post to a Facebook page
but no one will ever be allowed to log into the account.
d.    Requests a court order to release any contents of the
account or further information. 

3.    Yahoo:
a.    Will not disclose any passwords.
b.    Upon receiving a death certificate, Yahoo will deactivate
an account.

4.    Microsoft:
a.    Will not disclose any passwords or transfer ownership.
b.    Will terminate account if requested by loved ones.
c.    Allows family members who have been permitted
by the decedent to use their password to gain access. 
d.    Will give contents of account, if Microsoft receives
appropriate documentation.

5.    Twitter:
a.    Will not disclose any passwords.
b.    Will only release account information if
accompanied by a court order.
c.    If Twitter receives a death certificate,
they will deactivate the account.

6.    Tumblr:
a.    If immediate family requests the account be removed, it will do so.
b.    Will only disclose contents of account if they receive a court order.
c.    Will not disclose any passwords. 

7.    LinkedIn:
a.    Will not transfer or disclose any passwords.
b.    If email address is known, LinkedIn will hide 
account information from the public. 
c. Upon specific request, LinkedIn will delete account.

Of course, there are numerous other issues including 
digital access to bank accounts, who owns club memberships,
airline credit card miles and point accounts, and other related matters.

Be sure to contact your estate planning lawyer
to discuss these tricky issues before you complete
you next will, trust, or memo regarding digital access.
For more information,
please contact David M. Frees, III at 888-573-7407.

Can Joint Accounts Cause Family Disputes and How Can They be Avoided?

The use of joint accounts which are not coordinated with your will, trust, or
estate planning can often cause family misunderstandings and disputes.
To understand more about the question of joint accounts click here. 

David M. Frees, III, JD
610-933-8069
[email protected]