Los Angeles Trust and Estate Attorneys

Mina Sirkin on CNN re Michael Jackson

See Mina Sirkin on CNN:

Link to CNN Video: Mina Sirkin on the Michael Jackson Case

Special Needs Parents Seminar: May 6, 2009 6-7 p.m.

Come meet other Special Needs Parents and learn the top 5 things every Special Needs Parent needs to know:

Date: May 6, 2009

Time: 6-7 p.m.

Location:  20750 Ventura Blvd. Suite 201, Woodland Hills, CA 91364

To Register and get details:  Email to Karen Reyes: Info@SirkinLaw.com

AIG Executive Compensation? Yes or No?

There are so many points of view on whether or not AIG should have paid its executives after the bail out it received from the government.  

A contrarian, Andrew Ross Sorkin (no relation), makes a case for paying out the bonuses in his New York Times article, The Case for Paying the A.I.G. Bonuses.   Legally, there are the issues of contract law.   Can the government break a contract made among other parties?   I question the bail out in the first place, but ever more now that the government is technically a shareholder.   We bailed out AIG in return for control. Why did we not control and restrict the funds?   As I recall the threats of "talent" leaving AIG used to put the fear into the law maker's bellies to pass the bail out.  The "talend" left anyway.   I disagree with Sorkin who says no one else knows how to undo the mess.   We didn't want to believe that there were other experts.   After all, the guys at AIG learned it from someone.  Oh, perhaps it was Madoff!

As Americans, are we that stupid?  Congress should be held just as accountable for letting loose our money without restricting its use, as AIG for using it for illicit bonuses.   Granted, the company had prior compensation packages to deal with, but use other funds, not the tax payers' funds to pay those.

Here are possible solutions:

1.   Charge AIG with the amount of money it paid out as bonuses.

2.   Sue AIG for unfair business practices or rackerteering.

3.   Simply ask for the money back.

4.   Don't give any more money to any bank unless restricted.

Mina N. Sirkin is a legal expert in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law in Los Angeles, CA.  MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com.  http://SirkinLaw.com.  

Steps to securing the financial and personal future of disabled child

As parents of special needs children get older, the biggest question in their mind is: Who will take care of my child when I am gone?

There are steps securing the financial and personal life of a disabled child:

1.   Create a Special Needs Trust for the benefit of your disabled child.

2.   Discuss a petition for conservatorship/guardianship of the adult disabled child with an attorney to determine who will make health care decisions for your child if he is not able to do so.

3.   Select a trustee and back up trustees for your child.

4.   Select a non-profit organization to be there as a safety net, if your trustees fail.

5.   Create a Care Plan and update the care plan every year.   The Care Plan should include a list of physicians, and most current medication, with dates for the next visit.   Keep this in a three ring binder notebook.

6.   Buy life insurance early and name the special needs trust as its beneficiary.

7.   Don't leave the decision-making to your other children.

8.   Set aside time to build a financial plan for the disabled child which does not disqualify him from government aid.

9.   Don't alienate your family members who can be there for your child.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Trust Attorney in Los Angeles, CA, and mom to a really cool special needs child.  http://SirkinLaw.com.  MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com

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Copyright 2009 Mina N. Sirkin

Peter Falk Conservatorship filed; Actor has Alzheimer's Disease

Document: Actor Peter Falk has Alzheimer's

8 hours ago

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A court document filed by Peter Falk's daughter says the Emmy-winning actor is suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Catherine Falk is seeking a court's approval for a conservatorship of her 81-year-old father, who she claims no longer recognizes people. A hearing has been scheduled for late January.

Falk is familiar to most audiences as the star of the television series "Columbo," for which he won four Emmys. He was also nominated twice for Academy Awards for movie roles in 1959 and 1960.

The petition filed Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court states Falk lives in Beverly Hills with his wife and recently had hip surgery and requires constant care.

A phone message left for Falk's manager was not immediately returned Tuesday.

Hosted by

Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

 

 

___________________________

 

Are you wondering if a power of attorney for health care would have prevented this conservatorship?   The answer is no.  The actor has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and if he requires psychotropic medications, this can only be achieved through a conservatorship.   If he is unwilling to take prescribed medication, this court procedure will allow his daughter to manage his medications, and to communicate with his physicians regarding his psychotropic medications.

 

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer in Los Angeles and a TV legal expert in Los Angeles, California.   Ms. Sirkin is certified as a specialist attorney in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California.  MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.

 

 

 

 

 

FDIC proposes expansion of rules on loan modifications

October 2008

FDIC INDICATES POSSIBLE EXPANSION OF LOAN MODIFICATION PROGRAM FOR DISTRESSED MORTGAGES

The U.S. Department of the Treasury and other government agencies to establish programs to help stem the tide of foreclosures. Ms. Bair ighlighted a loan modification program implemented by the FDIC to rehabilitate bad loans made by the failed financial institution, IndyMac Bank, .S.B., using streamlined loan modification procedures developed by the FDIC. Due to the success of that program, the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.

(Freddie Mac) subsequently consented to the application of the FDIC’s loan modification program to many of their distressed loans.

Ms. Bair indicated that the FDIC and the Treasury might consider extending the loan modification program to a wider range of loan servicers. Any such loan modification program would build off of the FDIC’s efforts with IndyMac, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and would likely have some of the following features:

Suspension of foreclosure actions against certain troubled borrowers

Systematic identification of distressed mortgages that could be rehabilitated into performing loans using standardized loan modification procedures.

Refinancing of distressed mortgages through Federal Housing Administration (FHA) programs Government guarantees for modified loans educing and/or fixing interest rates

Establishing monthly payments that do not exceed a certain debt- to incomeatio for eligible borrowers.

Neither the FDIC nor the Treasury has as yet confirmed that such a program will be implemented.

To read Ms. Bair’s testimony, visit the FDIC’s website:

http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/speeches/chairman/spoct2308.html

Common Errors in Tax Deductions that Get the Attention of IRS Auditors

People avail of as many tax deductions as they can. Certainly, this is because they don't want the IRS tailing them every now and then and because they want to save as much money from taxes. In many cases, however, legal deductions are abused or their guidelines are loosely worded that they can be subject to a lot of interpretations. Although these deductions are provided to taxpayers for some valid reasons, large amounts will certainly alert any IRS agent that something is not right, and as a result, audit will be needed. Everyone is aware that IRS problems come after an audit.

One of the commonly misunderstood deductions is the home office. Many people believe that if they simply have a home office, where they work and do business, then they'll be able to deduct the value of their entire home. There are criteria and specific guidelines on when you would be able to deduct such a generally large sum of money. Understand that IRS auditors have often seen many inconsistencies and mistakes on tax returns. In fact, there is a system that will help them in making a decision to conduct an audit and in calculating the accuracy of items on tax returns. If you have simply deducted the full value of your house because you have a home office, then you're up for some IRS trouble.

Business owners also believe that they can deduct the entire amount of their auto expenses from their taxes when they advertise their company's name on their cars. Sadly, they can only claim for deductions that are related to the cost of the paint and advertising paraphernalia. Another option is claiming for a deduction on a certain percentage of their total auto expenses. This percentage is equivalent to the vehicle's mileage for business divided by its total mileage. For instance, if you have a total yearly mileage of 10,000 and 2,000 of this is utilized for business, then you can claim for 20% of your total auto expenses as deduction. This case then magnifies the necessity to keep accurate records of your mileage so you won't have IRS problems when claiming deductions related to your auto expenses.

Deductions related to body parts and pets also commonly appear on people's tax returns. Surprisingly, people do try to claim for deductions of body parts donated to science. Sadly though, if these donations are for non-profit groups and not 100% of your ownership rights and interests are given up, these are not valid claims for deductions. The IRS doesn't consider donating a body part alone as giving up 100% of your ownership rights or interest since it's just a 'part' of your body. Anyone who tries to deduct either body parts or their pets on their tax returns must also prepare to deal with some IRS problems.

Darrin T. Mish is a Nationally recognized Attorney whose practice focuses on representing clients across the United States with IRS Problems. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbel and is a member of the American Society of IRS Problem Solvers and the Tax Freedom Institute. He has been honored by a listing in Martindale-Hubbel's Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. His passion is providing IRS help to taxpayers with both individual and payroll tax problems. He also spends a great deal of time traveling the nation providing training to attorneys, CPAs and Enrolled Agents how to handle their toughest cases with the IRS. He can be reached at his website: http://getirshelp.com

Inheritances and Retirement Accounts

If you are married to a person who is a participant in a retirement account or plan, you have to protect yourself and your children by paying close attention to several things on this checklist.  By "retirement account", I mean, 401k, 403b, 457, IRA, Roth IRA, Stock Option Plans, Stock Purchase Plans, Keogh and any other qualified plan under ERISA.

1.   Check and verify beneficiary designations on the retirement account every 3-4 years.  Request copies of the signed beneficiary designation forms from the plan or company.   Keep a file for the beneficiary designation forms.

2.   Be sure that the employee's spouse is the named primary beneficiary.   If you don't name a beneficiary, the PLAN document governs who gets the benefits.   This may not always be your Estate, and you certainly do not want the employer to have to litigate or interplead the funds in court which can cost a lot of money. 

3.   Be sure minors are not designated as alternate beneficiaries.   Consult a local attorney who can guide you as to creating a trust for your minor children.

4.   If you want to name a minor as a contingent beneficiary, be sure to name a trustee of a trust for the benefit of the minor.   Never name a special needs child as a beneficiary or a contingent beneficiary of a retirement plan.   If you want to benefit a special needs child, go to an attorney and create a special needs trust and then name the special needs trust as a beneficiary.

5.   Never sign a beneficiary change form changing the primary beneficiary from the spouse to someone else BEFORE you get advice from a lawyer.

6.   If you are divorcing, you MUST talk to your divorce lawyer about a QDRO and insert protective provisions which go beyond retirement and extend to death of the participant.   If your spouse was previously divorced, you must review the prior divorce order, including any prior QDRO to insure that the current retirement benefits do not go to the former spouse.   QDRO orders which do not name specific retirement plan options can lead to major litigation after death which can be avoided by amending the QDRO after a new marriage, for specific items.

7.   Don't opt for the company life insurance.  Company life insurances are generally NOT portable.  If you change your employer, you will lose that life insurance.   You would be better-off buying a private term life insurance policy which you can keep even after you leave your employer.   If you are going to opt-in to the company's life insurance, you need to have a separate beneficiary form for this item.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer and a TV Legal Expert in Los Angeles, California.  Ms. Sirkin is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the State Bar of California.  MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com and http://www.SirkinLaw.com.   Financial blog at: http://www.MomsRules.com.

Copyright 2008 Mina N. Sirkin.  All rights reserved.

Mandatory Retirement Account Checklist

If you are married to a person who is a participant in a retirement account or plan, you have to protect yourself and your children by paying close attention to several things on this checklist.  By "retirement account", I mean, 401k, 403b, 457, IRA, Roth IRA, Stock Option Plans, Stock Purchase Plans, Keogh and any other qualified plan under ERISA.

1.   Check and verify beneficiary designations on the retirement account every 3-4 years.  Request copies of the signed beneficiary designation forms from the plan or company.   Keep a file for the beneficiary designation forms.

2.   Be sure that the employee's spouse is the named primary beneficiary.   If you don't name a beneficiary, the PLAN document governs who gets the benefits.   This may not always be your Estate, and you certainly do not want the employer to have to litigate or interplead the funds in court which can cost a lot of money. 

3.   Be sure minors are not designated as alternate beneficiaries.   Consult a local attorney who can guide you as to creating a trust for your minor children.

4.   If you want to name a minor as a contingent beneficiary, be sure to name a trustee of a trust for the benefit of the minor.   Never name a special needs child as a beneficiary or a contingent beneficiary of a retirement plan.   If you want to benefit a special needs child, go to an attorney and create a special needs trust and then name the special needs trust as a beneficiary.

5.   Never sign a beneficiary change form changing the primary beneficiary from the spouse to someone else BEFORE you get advice from a lawyer.

6.   If you are divorcing, you MUST talk to your divorce lawyer about a QDRO and insert protective provisions which go beyond retirement and extend to death of the participant.   If your spouse was previously divorced, you must review the prior divorce order, including any prior QDRO to insure that the current retirement benefits do not go to the former spouse.   QDRO orders which do not name specific retirement plan options can lead to major litigation after death which can be avoided by amending the QDRO after a new marriage, for specific items.

7.   Don't opt for the company life insurance.  Company life insurances are generally NOT portable.  If you change your employer, you will lose that life insurance.   You would be better-off buyiung a private term life insurance policy which you can keep even after you leave your employer.   If you are going to opt-in to the company's life insurance, you need to have a separate beneficiary form for this item.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer and a TV Legal Expert in Los Angeles, California.  Ms. Sirkin is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the State Bar of California.  MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com and http://www.SirkinLaw.com.   Financial blog at: http://www.MomsRules.com.

Are women more generous in planned giving?

CHICAGO, Sep 15, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Women recently surpassed men as the more prolific givers, according to a review of the latest IRS data by the Grant Thornton LLP National Tax Office.

Gifts from women topped those from men by almost $5 billion in 2005, the last year for which the IRS includes gender information in its publicly available gift tax return data. That's a reversal from the ratio in the IRS's last study of gender in 1997, when men gave $17.6 billion in gifts and women gave only $14.7 billion. The IRS's most recent quarterly statistics of income bulletin shows that in 2005 female donors reported giving $21.7 billion in gifts, while male donors gave just $16.8 billion.

All the IRS data comes from gift tax returns (Form 709), which taxpayers generally must file if they've given any individual more than the yearly gift tax exemption ($11,000 in 2005). Gifts reported on Form 709 are most often made to heirs and are rarely charitable deductions, which the IRS tracks in other ways.

There is some evidence that women may not be exploiting sophisticated tax planning options, such as trusts, as often as men. The data shows that 26 percent of men make their gifts through trusts, while only 22 percent of women do. Conversely, 78 percent of women use the direct gift method, while 74 percent of men do.

"You can only give away $1 million during your life before there are gift tax consequences for giving to non-charitable donees," said Justin Ransome, Grant Thornton's technical practice leader for family wealth planning. "Direct gifts are the simplest way to pass on money, but there are a myriad of established techniques available to reduce the gift tax consequences of a gift."

The IRS data also revealed differences in the kinds of assets given by women and men, with woman giving more gifts that are less often used as part of tax savings techniques. Women were more likely to give cash, as opposed to assets that could appreciate or qualify for valuation discounts. Almost 72 percent of women's gifts came from cash and real estate, compared to only 67.3 percent for men. Men gave a larger percentage of stock and partnerships. Valuation discounts were applied to 16.5 percent of all gifts in 2005 for a total of $3.1 billion.

"Gifts of cash are not necessarily the most efficient way to minimize gift and estate taxes," Ransome said. "It's often better to give assets that are expected to appreciate in the future or interests in a closely held business that will qualify for discounts for lack of control, lack of marketability, or minority interest."

Gifts are currently taxed at a maximum rate of 35 percent. There is a lifetime exemption from gift taxes of up to $1 million, but use of this exemption also counts against the estate tax exemption ($2 million in 2008). Taxpayers are also allowed a yearly gift tax exemption that does not count against the lifetime exemption. It is indexed for inflation in increments of $1,000 and is $12,000 per recipient for 2008. Married couples can usually give each recipient twice that if they choose to split their gifts.

SOURCE: Grant Thornton LLP

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Second marriages and wars after death

Ladies and Gentlemen:

If you are getting married for a second (or perhaps a third) time in California, you must take at least a minute to read this post. Our most litigated trust and estate cases come from cases where there is WAR going on among the second spouse and children of the first marriage AFTER death. These cases are handled JUST LIKE divorce cases, except they are among kids and second spouses.

THIS IS YOUR TO DO LIST IF YOU WANT TO PROMOTE WAR AFTER DEATH:

1. Go to an attorney without your spouse knowing and do a trust. Don't get a written spousal consent regarding community assets. There's nothing like making your spouse feel betrayed AFTER you're dead.

2. Hide assets from your spouse.

3. When you go to an attorney, don't tell him or her about ALL of your assets or lie about whether the property was community or from community sources.

4. Do lie about the value of the assets to your spouse or when and how you acquired them.

5. Conceal a child from a prior relationship or marriage from your spouse.

6. Don't disinherit people who you think should not take from your trust or estate.

7. Don't bother with a prenuptial or post-nuptial agreement.

8. Never change your will or trust AFTER you get remarried.

9. Never update your trust! AH, who needs that?!!!

10. Hand over money to children of the first marriage without written consent of your current spouse.

11. Marry someone 30 years younger, and leave ALL to her to the exclusion of your kids.

12. Never buy life insurance to help ease your spouse's or your kids' financial fears, even if you can afford it!!!

13.   Wait just until you are really really sick to prepare a trust or will.

14.  Lastly, change the beneficiary of your pension plan, from your spouse to someone else and forge her signature on the consent!

These are the top reasons why most trust and estates fail.   FOLKS, PLEASE DON'T ATTEMPT THESE.

On the other hand, it is so easy to plan for your estate when you get married, or when you plan to get married for the second time. No matter how many times we keep telling people to plan in advance, many just don't make the time to plan their estate.

See a lawyer well in advance of getting married, preferably several months and discuss your situation. You could save your estate hundreds of thousands of dollars!!

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer and a TV Legal Expert in Los Angeles, Ms. Sirkin is Certified as a Specialist Attorney in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California. MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.

Copyright 2008 Mina N. Sirkin.

Did you just inherit real estate?

If you have inherited real property you need to read this article:

When you inherit real property, you are likely to have gone through a grieving period and been burdened with the task of managing real estate all in one year. If you've been a professional property owner, you can probably handle this with relative ease. Now if you have your own primary residence and don't intend to move into the property, you must get used to many things as a home owner.

Most people are so busy that property management becomes a chore and they soon opt to sell the property rather than to repair and rent it.

“A lot of people have enough to do just to maintain their own property and now all of a sudden they have another piece of property they have to deal with — that’s a little difficult," says Carl Izzo, Managing Director at Fiduciary Real Estate Advisors in Boston.

Why do you need legal advice when receiving real property as an inheritance? Depending on where the property is and where you live, the law varies in taxation of the gain and in the reassessment of the property taxes. For example, in California, if you are a child and you inherited real property from your parents or grand parents, you should explore whether or not Prop. 13 low taxes will apply to you and be sure to complete the proper forms, in a timely fashion to preserve it. For that, you should obtain legal advice from counsel to guide you to be sure you don't lose the prop. 13 benefits.

If you are one of several siblings who have inherited real property, you must know that the grieving process includes an anger stage. By experience, very little gets done in this period. In fact, most fights in estates occur during this period.

The decision of whether to keep the property, sell the property, rent the property should be put to a vote, or left to an arbitrator if no agreement can be reached after having several family discussions to see if an agreement can be reached.

There are many companies, like Advanced Inheritance (Woodland Hills, CA), which lend to heirs to enable heirs to buy-out each other.

To have a successful family discussion, ask each heir to write down several things:

1. What do you consider to be a fair price for the property?

2. What do you consider to be a fair rental value for the property?

3. Are you willing to contribute to the expenses and property taxes, and if yes, how much?

4. Are you willing to hold-on to the property long-term (over one year)?

5. What is the longest term you are willing to hold on to the property?

6. How would you rate the condition of the property on a scale of 1-10 (10 being best)?

7. How much in repairs do you think it would cost to bring the property to market value?

If you are the successor trustee, or executor, you must keep accurate receipts for all expenses of the real property before it is distributed. Once the property is distributed, if there are multiple owners, one of the owners should agree to keep the records and print a monthly report of the property expenses for the remaining owners.

So that there are no surprises, you should consult an accountant to advise you of the potential State of California withholdings from sales if you are selling the property. Determine quickly if the decedent had unpaid Federal, State or local taxes and discuss this with the heirs if those have become liens against the property.

If there are homeowners association fees, be sure to pay them on time, so that they do not become liens against the property. Of great importance is the upkeep of home owner's insurance. Be sure it does not lapse and immediately call the insurance agent to get a rider after death. Some companies terminate the policy after death, and you certainly don't want to be left without it.

Regardless of whether or not you intend to sell the property, you must obtain a Certified Appraisal to establish your basis. Stepped-up basis in most cases is likely help save taxes meaning it would be valued as of the date of the death for purposes of determining capital gains. While this law still exists, you should always consult with your tax adviser and your attorney to determine the rules at the time of sale.

Here is a list of professionals you will need when you are about to inherit real property:

1. Trust and Estate Lawyer.

2. Real Estate Broker.

3. Accountant.

4. Appraiser.

5. Home owner's Insurance agent.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer and a TV Legal Expert in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Sirkin is Certified as a Specialist attorney in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California. MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.

Copyright 2008 Mina Sirkin. All rights reserved.

How to determine if you should pursue a legal case?

There are many reasons why people litigate. To determine whether or not you should pursue a legal case, you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. What are my damages?
2. Can I collect from the defendant if I win the case?
3. How much am I willing to risk?
4. Am I pursuing the case for a reason other than economic recovery or damage control? If the answer to this is yes, it is very unlikely that your case will settle.
5. Will the lawsuit prevent further damage or create more damage?
6. Am I willing to deal with the emotional ups and downs of litigation for a few years?

Go through the above questions yourself first. Then go through the questions with your lawyer. You may be surprised about the answers.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer and a Legal Expert in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Sirkin is a Certified Specialist attorney in Estate Planning, Probate and Trusts Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California. MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.

Battling Heirs

As posted on CNN.com

"By Sarah Jio

(LifeWire) -- How well do you and your siblings deal with conflict? Brenda Bredahl, 47, says that after her mother died in 1999 she and two of her siblings had to rely on the legal system to help negotiate with a brother over their mother's estate.

"We had a large auction to sell her personal possessions," says the freelance writer, who lives in Hudson, Wisconsin. "We all agreed to keep a few things, but it was the real estate that caused a squabble."

In short, Bredahl and the two siblings ended up filing a lawsuit against one of their brothers, who promptly filed an answer and counterclaim.

The case was settled in 2005 with an agreement to allow the brother to purchase the real estate at a fair-market price. But all left with battle scars and some hurt feelings. Their relationship today? "It's lukewarm at best," Bredahl says, speaking for herself and her other siblings.

Arguments over family heirlooms and other belongings from a parent's estate can disrupt even the closest-knit families.

"All the old resentments come out, and people who had unfinished business with the deceased will try to handle their feelings by becoming possessive, greedy and argumentative," says Tina Tessina, a marriage and family therapist in Long Beach, California, who has counseled families on such issues.

It's not about possessions, it's about feelings

Doug Stanley, an estate-planning attorney with Bryan Cave LLP in St. Louis, says when it comes to a deceased parent's will, there are bound to be hurt feelings. He describes a client who remarried after his first wife died. When the client passed away, he willed a valuable gun and the family's antique china, among other things, to his current wife -- not his children.

The client wasn't being vindictive; rather, he wanted his wife to have them while she was alive, and then pass them on to the children after her death, Stanley says. The children didn't quite see it that way. "These items were family heirlooms," he says. "The kids (expected) to get them. There were hurt feelings because someone who was foreign to them got these heirlooms."

When families fight over material possessions, says Elinor Robin, a family therapist and mediator in Boca Raton, Florida, it's usually not about the money. "It's typically about... how we feel valued or devalued, dismissed, discounted, disenfranchised and disrespected in relation to the situation."

For example, she says, "if my grandmother leaves my cousin the jewelry, it's not about the value of the jewelry -- because I probably would not have sold it anyway -- but the clear message that my cousin is better, more loved and more valued than I am. This interaction can trigger a lifelong feud."

When donating makes more sense

Even without sibling rivalry to contend with, an only child may find giving up treasured family artifacts, especially those imbued with childhood memories, to be extraordinarily difficult.

Kristin Anderson, the child of former South Dakota Gov. Sigurd Anderson, longed to hold on to her parents' entire estate -- the family heirlooms, the boxes of political mementos, the historical photos -- and the memories it contained.

"When it came time to giving away memorabilia, I couldn't," says Anderson, 54, a communications manager for a university in Michigan. "The thousands of books and political papers and personal items that he and my mother had were too precious."

Yet, Anderson says, she began to realize the significance that these items could have to others. She spent about two years combing through her family's relics. In the end, some 450 boxes of papers, photos, books, political items, plus furniture went to a museum.

"It still breaks my heart that most of the treasures are no longer with me," Anderson, who lives near Lansing. But, she adds, knowing that the heirlooms will live on and be shared with the public gives her great satisfaction.

Anderson believes that if she had siblings, they might have helped her get through the emotional upheaval of going through her parents' belongings. But, she says, "there probably would have been issues about 'stuff' -- things like dishes, linens, furniture, the car, anything that possibly would qualify as an antique, or items people use or display in their homes. And grandchildren could have added to a situation."

Family feud diffusers

A loved one's passing can be stressful enough without the added drama of fighting over family heirlooms. Here are some hints for reducing the chance of conflict:

Make sure there's a will. "My mother died without a will," says Bredahl. "Get a will, and consult an outside lawyer, executor or estate administrator the first thing upon a family member's death. Don't wait until things disintegrate."

Discuss before death. Discuss your intentions about family heirlooms with your parents and siblings before a parent passes away, says Tessina. Or, do it in the company of an arbiter such as a close family friend, a priest or pastor, or a family mediator.

"Jointly go through the possessions, with each person choosing in turn," she adds. "The arbiter makes a list of who chose what, and then people are given a chance to trade or re-negotiate, as long as the process remains calm and reasonable."

Use the sticker method. If heirlooms are in question, all siblings should view them together, says David Woodburn, an attorney who specializes in family-estate issues with Trusts and Estates Practice Group in Akron, Ohio. "Each child is given a set of colored stickers," he says. "Then they draw straws, which sets an order for picking items, and then proceed to place their respective stickers on the items they want. It sounds a little tacky, but has been extremely effective."

Hire a professional. "Do not attempt to save money by dividing property amongst yourselves, no matter how good your relationship is with your family," says Bredahl. "A [neutral third party] is much more useful in the beginning when relations are not yet strained." "

____________

Estate planning can be a challenging task. How to diffuse anger during the grieving process is a job which should be handled delicately by expert estate attorneys. The key to a successful plan is to communicate your family dynamics with your estate lawyer. Lack of open communication is what normally leads to battles after death, usually over issues which could be resolved rationally. Estate planning is however not an entirely rational process.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Sirkin is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law. MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.
Tel.: 818-340-4479.

Business Owners reported to lack asset protection planning

As reported in Inc.

"A study finds many wealthy family businesses have no asset protection plans.

By: Michael GaddPublished June 12, 2008

Many wealthy family businesses lack adequate asset protection plans, with owners saying the process is just too complicated, according to a study released this week by Prince & Associates Inc.

In a survey of 242 family-owned businesses with a mean value of $730 million, nearly all expressed concerns about protecting their wealth, even though most had no asset protection plans in place, the Redding, Conn.-based market research firm reported.

About a quarter of respondents said the process was too complicated, while others said they lacked sufficient guidance to protect their family fortune.

By contrast, nearly 80 percent said they had personal estate plans. Yet even these plans were likely to be more than six years old and hadn't been updated after a marriage or divorce, the survey found.

"Not only do these families need to act on implementing and updating their wealth planning strategies, they need more sophisticated strategies to better protect their wealth," Mindy Rosenthal, the study's co-author, said in a statement."

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Lack of succession planning and asset protection planning can destroy businesses, families, relationships and friendships. Most poeple don't recognize that business planning is different than pure estate planning. As easily as estate planning can be accomplished, business succession and asset protection planning can be accomplished to give you peace of mind. Keep in mind, asset protection planning needs to be done when things are good, and before claims arise.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Sirkin is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California.
MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com. http://www.SirkinLaw.com.

Asset Protection

Asset Protection is one of the busiest areas of practice due to the economy. As more banks are foreclosing on mortgages, they are now seeking recovery of the debt owed beyong the value of the home. In California, purchase money loans are subject to anti-deficiency rules. This means that if you stayed with your original loan when you first purchased the home, and if the loan is foreclosed, the lender can only recover the house. Anti-deficiency rules do not apply to loans which have been refinanced. They also do not apply to home-equity loans. Therefore, if the mortgage was refinanced and the home gets foreclosed upon and the lender recovers less than the amount of the loan, the lender can file suit against the borrower to recover the balance of the deficiency.

If you are facing foreclosure, you must talk to a loan work-out attorney who will assist you in negotiating with the lender if you anticipate a deficiency. With the housing prices continuing to decrease in Southern California, there is significant chance of deficiencies in recovery by lenders. Prudent advice from a loan work-out attorney can protect your other assets in the event of a foreclosre.

Mina N. Sirkin is a Family Wealth Lawyer in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Sirkin is a Board Certified Specialist attorney in Estate Planning, Probate and Trut Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California. http://www.SirkinLaw.com. MSirkin@SirkinLaw.com.