Redkey Gordon P.C.

Technology v. The Law

http://blogs.findlaw.com/legally_weird/2014/01/drivers-google-glass-ticket-dismissed-judge-sees-no-proof.html

$788,000 Estate Left Unclaimed

Thus far, many people have attempted to establish a link – none have been successful. If no one claims the inheritance in 30 years, the money goes to the British crown.

No will or other estate planning documents could be found for Kathleen Hilda Ryan, who passed away in Greenwhich, United Kingdom in 2013 with an estate valued at $788,000. She had inherited the bulk of it from her sister, Joan.

Kathleen had no children of her own and no living siblings.

In fact, as far as anyone knows, she had no living relatives at all. However, it is believed that her aunt, Lizzie, emigrated from Ireland to New York at some point.

Thus, the search is on for what happened to Lizzie and whether she had any children.

If any of Lizzie's children are found, then they would inherit the estate. If no one is found in 30 years, then the estate will become the property of the British Crown.

Many people have submitted claims to being the descendants of Lizzie, but thus far no one has been able to prove it.

Irish Central reported the story in an article titled "Is your ancestor Lizzie Ryan from Westmeath? You could inherit $788,000."

In the United States, the law is basically the same with one big exception. If no relative is found the estate does not go to the British Crown, but rather it passes to the state in which the estate property is located.

Thus, unless you want your estate to become the property of state government, it is very important that you have some kind of estate plan, especially if you do not have any close relatives who can be easily found.

Of course, if you are descended from a Lizzie Ryan who emigrated from Ireland to New York in the mid-1900s, you might want to stake a claim to the estate of Kathleen Hilda Ryan while you can.

Speak to Robert A. Gordon of Redkey Gordon Law Corp to create your estate planning documents.

Reference: Irish Central (May 16, 2015) "Is your ancestor Lizzie Ryan from Westmeath? You could inherit $788,000."

Have You Reviewed Your Estate Plan since These 4 Key Dates?

So how do you know if your estate plan is out-of-date?  If your will or trust predates these four key “freshness dates,” it may be time to visit your attorney for a review.

Estate plans are not meant to be a one-time deal. If life changes – or the law changes – you need to update your plan accordingly.

The website nextavenue.org recently posted a very informative article, titled “Why Your Will May Be Out of Date,” which states that although your estate planning documents are still valid, they may no longer work the way you originally thought they would.

But how do you know if your estate plan is out-of-date? If your will or trust was created prior to the four key “freshness dates” listed below, it’s time to visit your estate planning attorney for a review.

April 14, 2003: the required HIPAA compliance date. The HIPAA privacy rule imposed strict guidelines on the disclosure of “protected health information” (or PHI) without the patient’s express permission. The privacy protections are designed to help us, but they could be problematic if your executor, trustee or agent (under a durable power of attorney) needs to speak about your personal details with your employer, insurer, or medical providers. The rule says that to act on your behalf, an authorized person must have a written document executed by you, with very specific language required by HIPAA. The article says that if your will, revocable trust, durable power of attorney or health care power of attorney was executed before April 14, 2003, your executor, trustee or agent may have some trouble working with your medical providers and insurers. Talk to an estate planning attorney and have him or her update your documents to include the required HIPAA language.

January 1, 2005: if you live in a state that imposes its own state-level estate or inheritance tax. Prior to 2001, there was a federal credit for state death taxes, varying by the size of the estate. There was little incentive to make plans for avoiding state death taxes because those taxes were totally offset by the federal credit. However, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Act of 2001 (EGTRA) phased out the credit between 2002 and 2004, and since January 1, 2005, state estate or inheritance taxes apply in addition to any federal estate tax. There are now 15 states that impose their own state estate tax. Seven states have an inheritance tax. Several states have both. If you live in a state that imposes its own estate tax and your will or revocable trust was executed before 2005, you need to talk to your estate planning attorney about these state taxes.

December 17, 2010: the enactment date of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 (“TRA 2010”). This upped the federal estate tax exclusion to $5 million for 2010 and indexed it to inflation after that. For 2015, the federal estate tax exclusion is $5.43 million. In effect, TRA 2010 eliminated the federal estate tax for thousands of people, so if your estate plan was created before December 17, 2010, your estate planning documents may contain federal tax-planning provisions that are no longer needed. Talk to your estate planning attorney about a better and simpler plan. However, the reverse may be true if you live in one of the 20 states that imposes a state estate tax or inheritance tax. There may be a more sophisticated plan you need to consider with your attorney to deal with state estate taxes, as they usually start at a much lower threshold. The article stresses that tax laws are drastically different today: estate planning documents drafted before December 17, 2010 may produce unexpected or unfavorable results.

January 2, 2013: the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) went into effect. This is important for married couples with a combined taxable estate exceeding $5.43 million – it made the “portability election” a regular feature of federal estate tax planning, which allows an executor to transfer a deceased spouse’s unused federal estate tax exclusion to a surviving spouse, a very important estate-planning tool. So, if you are married and your will or trust was drafted before January 2, 2013, you need to sit down with your attorney—you might be missing out on valuable tax planning opportunities.

Contact Robert A. Gordon of Redkey Gordon Law Corp to update your estate planning documents.

Reference: nextavenue.org (April 27, 2015) “Why Your Will May Be Out of Date”

Can Your Executor Access Your Digital Accounts?

“‘Do you have any important business online?’ That is now just as important of a conversation as asking somebody their health care preferences in a life-threatening situation.”

Leaving your digital accounts out of your estate plan can prove to be a big, bad mistake.

Most digital accounts require passwords for access, even accounts we would not have considered as important even a decade ago.

For example, if you open a line of credit with a furniture store, you might be required to produce a password either online or by phone to do something as simple as check the account balance or the next payment due date. If there is still a balance due on the account, then it is important that your executor or estate administrator have that password so he or she can pay the appropriate amount.

If you think that these smaller accounts do not matter, you might be surprised to know that something as simple as scheduling cable repairs can be difficult without the password.

That was the case for a WGN reporter after her husband died of cancer. Her experience is recounted in a recent WGN article titled "Preparing for the digital afterlife."

Unfortunately, her husband was the only person who knew the password and the reporter was therefore unable to request any changes or repairs to the cable account.

When preparing your estate plan remember every account you have.

Even if you think it is too small to bother with in an estate plan, someone will need to have access to it if you pass away.

Contact Robert A. Gordon of Redkey Gordon Law Corp, an experienced estate planning attorney. He can help you ensure that such seemingly little details are not overlooked in your estate planning.

Reference: WGN (May 18, 2015) "Preparing for the digital afterlife."

Making End of Life Plans for Yourself and Your “Stuff”

At Hospice of Anchorage, end of life planning is what clinical director Alison O'Donnell encourages. Having advanced directives, or a living will, and a power of attorney in place is a gift to family, she said.

Folks all over the country are starting to think about downsizing for retirement. Consignment shop owner Christy Carter knows this all too well, as she helps those downsizing sell their belongings. Ms. Carter said in a KTUU.com article, “End of life planning a 'gift for family,' experts say,”that she also receives a lot of merchandise from families who are cleaning up the estate of a loved one who has recently passed away. Most of the furniture she sells are from estates.

Many who have already lost a loved one don't want to deal with all of the details because they're going through their grief process emotionally. However, end of life planning is what the clinical director of an Anchorage area hospice recommends. Having advanced directives or a living will, and a power of attorney in place is a gift to family, she said.

The article explains that ultimately it’s the family that must make those decisions. However, many family members have complicated grief afterwards because they're trying to honor their loved one and don’t know exactly what they should do. This can be very distressing.

The hospice director in the article recommends what’s called “the five wishes" model. The Five Wishes lets your family and doctors know:

• Those you want to make health care decisions for you when you are unable to;
• The kind of medical treatment you do or don’t want;
• The type of comforts you want;
• How you want people to treat you; and
• What you want your loved ones to know.

The article explains that a five wishes document not only addresses medical wishes, but also can detail emotional, personal, and spiritual wishes.

Talk with Robert A. Gordon of Redkey Gordon Law Corp, an elder law attorney, for long-term care planning and estate planning. It’s smart to plan for death at any stage in life.

Reference: KTUU.com (May 13, 2015) “End of life planning a 'gift for family,' experts say”

Reminder! Time to Do Your Estate Planning

Make it a point to learn about the factors and areas that must be addressed in estate planning in order to maximize, protect and preserve your legacy the absolute best way.

You don’t have to be ultra-wealthy to have an estate plan.

The Kokomo Perspective’s May 16 article, “Don’t Forget About This,” reminds us that the ultimate goal of estate planning is to pass on as much of your unused assets with the least amount of taxes, expenses, fees and time—and do it as privately as possible. You want to protect and preserve your legacy for your family, loved ones, and charitable causes.

This is why you can’t forget about proper estate planning. There are numerous issues to consider, and it’s best to do this with the help of an experienced estate planning attorney.

A few of these issues are common sense, like having the right type of estate planning documents; however, most are just not considered by many people.

Make it a point to talk with Robert A. Gordon of Redkey Gordon Law Corp, an experienced estate planning attorney, about which issues should be addressed in your estate planning so that you can maximize, protect and preserve your legacy the very best way.

Reference: Kokomo Perspective (May 16, 2015) “Don’t Forget About This”