Are you changing your name? Don’t think we’re only talking about the wife – some states allow men to adopt their wife’s last name, and some states permit civil union partners to change their names. Federal agencies generally don’t recognize name changes for men after marriage which means the man would need to go through… Read More
1. Procrastinating. When are you going to make an estate plan? Let me guess. You call your lawyer on Monday when you’re leaving for vacation on Saturday (a trip planned months ago) and want a will before you go. Or worse, you wait until you are in hospice and decide perhaps you’d best make a… Read More
What does it mean if your name is on someone else’s bank account? It depends. For all deposit accounts, the rights of the parties to a multiple party account are determined under the Pennsylvania Multiple-Party Account Act. A joint account is one that is payable on request to one or more parties whether or not… Read More
Tax season is just over. The filing deadline of April 17 is past. (My son, as a little kid, said he thought there were five seasons – spring, summer, fall, winter and tax season.) As soon as you have calculated the damages for your 2011 Form 1040, the next question for most taxpayers is what… Read More
Qualified long-term-care insurance (LTCI) policies are entitled to special tax treatment. To be termed “qualified”, the policy must be guaranteed renewable and cannot have any cash value. A qualified policy requires that a person 1) be expected to require care for at least 90 days, and be unable to perform two or more activities of… Read More
The Thursday, March 31, Intelligencer/New Era carried The Motley Fool’s School article entitled “Probate 101.” I was appalled. I thought those guys were pretty smart. And I always liked the Shakespearean allusion to the Fool who could tell the truth to the King and Queen. But what happened? Probate is not the horror it is… Read More
If you did a Roth IRA conversion in 2010, congratulations. The next smart thing to do is to review that decision and see if it still makes sense for your situation. When a traditional IRA is converted to a Roth, all before-tax contributions made to the IRA become taxable; and the income tax must be… Read More
We are proud to announce that Pennsylvania Trusts and Estates Blog has been nominated as one of the Top 25 Blogs for Estate, Probate and Elder Law by LexisNexis Our Pennsylvania Fiduciary Litigation Blog was also nominated. The Top Blogs campaign on the LexisNexis Estate Practice & Elder Law Community will move ahead in several… Read More
Long-term care includes a broad range of medical and support services for people with a degenerative condition (such as Parkinson’s or stroke) a prolonged illness (such as cancer) or a cognitive disorder (like Alzheimer’s). It involves providing assistance with the activities of daily living and supervision if needed. The cost of care in a facility… Read More
“Always get married in the morning. That way if it doesn’t work out, you haven’t wasted the whole day.” – -Mickey Rooney Beloved actor and entertainer Mickey Rooney is 90 years old. His film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. As a teenager he was a superstar in the Andy Hardy films.… Read More