Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog

Are Bitcoins Part of Your Houston Estate?

Published on: August 14, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

To the digerati – the elite of the technology world – Bitcoins are as valuable as the dollar or any other state-sponsored currency. But the rules are still under development for estate planning purposes, and planning for an estate that includes Bitcoins must take this into account.

Most people know what Bitcoins are, even if they don’t use the digital currency that has become popular in the online world. The theory behind Bitcoins was that the world was ready for digital currency, an electronic peer to peer cash system that would eliminate the use of money created by countries.

Bitcoins were to be untraceable and uncontrollable by any government.

NY Psychiatrist Accused of Undue Influence Over Vulnerable Patient

Published on: August 13, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

The classic story of a vulnerable wealthy elderly person being influenced by a caretaker who seeks to enrich him or herself has been updated in a dispute between a disinherited brother and psychiatrist/girlfriend of a Texas woman who is alleged to have been manipulated out of millions.

A successful and wealthy attorney with undisclosed health problems took a medical leave of absence from her law practice and traveled to New York City for treatment by a psychiatrist. Five months after treatment began, according to a statement submitted in court, things became complicated.

Several years later, the heavily-medicated attorney, Amy Blumenthal, passed away. What is alleged to have happened during those years might shock some people.

Are Your Houston Beneficiary Designations Current?

Published on: August 12, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

For many Americans, the majority of non-real estate assets are their retirement accounts and life insurance policies. However, a large number of people forget to update their designated beneficiaries, which can lead to key assets going to unintended beneficiaries. An unusual fact pattern cited here reminds us of the importance of keeping beneficiary designations up-to-date.

Like millions of hardworking Americans, Austin Hardy's employer managed his retirement plan. Hardy may have been absent on the date that the HR department explained the importance of naming a death beneficiary for his plan; he either forgot or neglected to designate a beneficiary.

When he passed away, Hardy’s employer did the right thing: it followed the default rules of the plan. Those rules stated that if no surviving spouse or partner existed, then the plan should pass to a surviving child, whether biological or adopted.

Daughter’s Disinheritance Ruled “Unreasonable;” Mother’s Will Reversed

Published on: August 11, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

In most cases, as long as basic principles are followed, a person is entitled by law to leave whatever he or she wishes to their heirs. There are no requirements to leave assets to adult children, but a recent ruling in a London Court of Appeals may change this.

When Thomas Jackson passed away in an industrial accident, he left behind a wife and a daughter who was only two months old. He left a small estate from his earnings and compensation for his death that went to Melita Jackson, the mother of his daughter, Heather Ilott.

At the age of 17, Ilott eloped with her teenage boyfriend. Despite the fact that the relationship continued for well over 40 years and the couple had five children, Melita Jackson never forgave her daughter and spurned all attempts at reconciliation.

Will Your Reward Points Transfer to Houston Heirs?

Published on: August 10, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Most of us never look twice at the fine print of the frequent flier rewards program’s terms and conditions. The type is so small and there’s so much of it … but if you did, you’d probably see language stating that any accumulated points are not transferrable on death. Some heirs have found that having the right documents and asking nicely can lead to an unexpected result.

If you fly the same route frequently, it pays to use the same airline and sign up for the airline’s rewards program. The accrued points can lead to great deals, reduce your airfare costs and for the real road warrior, generate enough rewards for free trips. There’s real value in these kinds of programs for the frequent flier.

Nevertheless, not everyone uses his or her accumulated point balance before passing away. Since the accumulated points do have a real market value, the question then becomes whether or not they are part of a decedent's estate.

What Happens to Your Houston Facebook Page Upon Your Death?

Published on: August 7, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Facebook offers a feature that will allow a designated person to have increased access to a Facebook account when its owner passes away. Facebook realizes there is a growing need to support those who are grieving the loss of a loved one and those who want a say in what happens to their account after death.

Facebook responded by launching a feature called: "Legacy Contact." This feature may help your loved ones through the grieving process in the event of your death and allows you to designate what will happen with your account upon passing.

If you are a Facebook user, you may want to go into your account now and designate your Legacy Contact to manage your account when you pass away. Here is how it works when someone passes away:

You Are An Executor: What to Do and NOT Do

Published on: August 7, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

An executor of an estate can easily get into trouble for not doing certain things, but an executor can also find themselves in trouble if they do certain things. An experienced estate planning attorney can help with navigating the do’s and don’ts of the executor’s tasks.

There are no lack of guidelines to help an executor or personal representative of an estate to understand the specific tasks and responsibilities that he or she has when managing an estate. Most guides, available online, at personal finance websites, in magazines and books, are written with an eye to the positive and provide a good outline of the tasks that need to be taken.

That can leave a lot of important information out, however, if the executor is not also given advice about what not to do doing during the process.

Can Estate Plans Control Kids After Your Death?

Published on: August 5, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

It is not unusual for wealthy parents to guide their children in their life choices while they are alive, and it’s also not unusual to control how heirs spend their inheritances. But using an inheritance as an incentive to reach specific benchmarks is a new one on us – and perhaps typical of the type of personality it takes to amass great wealth.

When New York real estate tycoon Maurice Laboz passed away, he left behind an estate worth approximately $35 million dollars, two daughters, 21 and 17, and an unusual estate plan.

As is often the case, Laboz did not leave all of that money to his daughters right away. Instead, they must wait until they are 35 years old to receive their inheritances.

Can Incentive Trusts Guide Good Behavior?

Published on: August 4, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

A trust that rewards heirs for desired behavior is known as an “incentive trust.” These kinds of trusts are popular among those who fear that their beneficiaries will not treat their inheritances with respect and are likely to waste vast amounts of resources. If you are considering setting up an incentive trust that will succeed, it needs to be done correctly.

Some wealthy families worry that their heirs may not be capable of handling large inheritances, and are concerned that the money may be squandered. In an effort to guide their heirs, they turn to incentive trusts to reward heirs who follow in what they consider to be the correct path.

For example, if you are planning your Houston estate and creating a trust for a minor child, you might want to create a trust that rewards the child for graduating from college or getting a job.

Family Feud: Sibling Rivalry Extends Beyond the Grave

Published on: August 3, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Wealthy mining magnate Harry Magnuson thought that his estate plan was all settled, and it was, while he was alive. But his wife did not follow the plan he had created, and as a result, one of the Magnuson children is now suing his siblings over an inheritance.

When Harry Magnuson and his wife Colleen had their estate plan created in 2002, the structure was relatively straight-forward: if Harry died first, everything would be left to the surviving spouse. When Colleen died, the entire estate was to be divided equally among the couple’s five children.

Harry passed away in 2009 and Colleen received everything as planned. However, when she passed away, everything was not divided equally between all of the children.