Latest Blog Posts
Estate Planning: Do you have an AB Trust Plan?
If you’re married and you haven’t had your estate plan reviewed since before January 2, 2013, by an experienced estate planning lawyer, then pull your documents out of the drawer, dust them off, and take a closer look at their trust provisions. Do they contain terms such as ‘Marital Trust,’ ‘QTIP Trust,’ ‘Spousal Trust,’ ‘A Trust,’ ‘Family Trust,’ ‘Credit Shelter Trust,’ or ‘B Trust’?
Discretionary Trust’s — Protection for Your Beneficiaries
Leaving your hard-earned assets outright to your children, grandchildren or other beneficiaries after you die will make their inheritance easy prey for creditors, predators, and divorcing spouses. Instead, consider using discretionary trusts for the benefit of each of your beneficiaries.
Probate Avoidance Through Use of a Revocable Living Trust
If it is your goal to avoid probate and you’ve set up a Revocable Living Trust, congratulations! You’re definitely on the right track. But…you’re only half way there. Many believe because they took the time to create a Trust, their estate will automatically avoid probate. Unfortunately, this is a false sense of security.
Why Probate Takes so Long
Probate can be easily avoided, but most estates are dragged through the process. Why? Many people fail to create an estate plan, so probate is required. And – others plan with just a Will, so probate is required. In Montana, the probate process is fairly streamlined, and should not necessarily be avoided. However, the process does take time and
can drag on for months – or even years. Here are some of the most common reasons why probate takes so long:
Pitfalls of Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship
Owning property as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship is easy, common, and often disastrous. Sadly, children – both minor and adult – are often disinherited.
Every Adult Needs and Estate Plan
If you’re reading this, you need an estate plan. Why? The short answer is ‘Everyone, age 18 and older needs an estate plan.’ It doesn’t matter if you are old or young, if you have built up considerable wealth or if you are just entering adulthood –you need a written plan to keep you in control and to protect yourself and those you love.
Portability and Estate Planning
Surprising to most people, the federal estate tax is a voluntary tax. Estate planning attorneys used to say, ‘You only pay if you don’t plan.’ Now, portability provides both an alternative and a back up plan to lifetime tax planning. This means you might be able to minimize or even eliminate federal estate taxes even if you didn’t plan.
Trust Administration at the Death of the Grantor
Upon the death of a trust maker the Bryan Law Firm, PC offers legal services to your successor trustee. The trustee is responsible for seeing that the assets of the trust are distributed properly and in a timely manner. An overview of the valuable guidance we provide includes:
Social Security Benefits are an Important Aspect of a Comprehensive Estate Plan
What you don’t know about Social Security benefits can hurt you and your spouse for the rest of your lives. Here are three traps to avoid when taking your benefits.
Estate Planning – Guardian’s of minor children
Parents with minor children need to name someone to raise them (a guardian) in the event both parents should die before the child becomes an adult. While the likelihood of that actually happening is slim, the consequences of not naming a guardian are great.
Bryan Law Firm, PC
11 East Main St., Suites B & DÂ
Bozeman, MT 59715
Telephone: (406) 586-8565
Email: blf@bryanlawpc.com