Estate Planning

Let’s talk probate. At some point in your life, you may find yourself an administrator, a beneficiary or a creditor of a probate estate. You may even want this information for planning your own estate. Listen up.   Administration of a Probate Estate At its most basic, probate involves assets, debts and distribution. The administration of a probate estate involves the collection of all assets owned by and all claims owing to...

What Is An Epitaph? Epitaph n. An inscription on a tomb, showing that virtues acquired by death have a retroactive effect. Following is a touching example: Here lie the bones of Parson Platt,/ Wise, pious, humble and all that,/ Who showed us life as all should live it;/ Let that be said — and God forgive it! Short Epitaph Examples Your epitaph may be your last and best chance to rewrite your history. Do...

What powers are so incredibly dangerous that they were deliberately omitted from a state-wide form?  “Hot powers”, of course.   When Texas developed a new statutory form for the durable power of attorney, it left out an entire section of powers that could be delegated to an agent. These are commonly known as the “hot powers.”   Hot powers were born in 2017 when Texas made its much-ballyhooed change to the durable power...

Many people question whether they need to invest the time and money to have certain legal documents prepared.  Often that question arises when they don’t understand what a particular document does for them.  Here we address one of those essential documents. What Is The Medical Power of Attorney? A Medical Power of Attorney is one of several “ancillary” documents that are regularly prepared along with a Will or Trust as part...

While Texas is among the states that do not require you hire an attorney when buying your house, there are times where an attorney can provide significant value.  A real estate attorney can add value if you are buying a home without a real estate agent, or in the event your transaction involves one of the many complex situations that can arise when buying a house.  Real estate agents...

You have done your research, sought out and considered competent legal and tax advice, and finally decided to sign off on a revocable living trust-based estate plan. Now comes the hard part: funding the trust. What Is A Trust? To understand what and why you are doing that, you need to first visualize the basics of a trust. A trust is simply a written letter to the trustee with your instructions on...

I usually do not write about pending legislation because the language in bills can change at lightening speed and it is difficult to summarize a bill without partisan spin. This year is different. The proposed changes are so drastic and impactful on estate planning and probate that you need to know what is out there. The top 4 laws to watch are the federal estate and gift tax exemption, portability,...

Home. Your home is where your family resides. If it happens that your home is one on a piece of land that you or your spouse owns, then your home is considered your homestead. There is a lot of Texas law about homesteads. The Texas Constitution, the Texas Property Code, and hundreds of cases define homestead rights. That brings us to the subject of probate homesteads. For purposes of estate planning, you...

One of the benefits of practicing estate and trust litigation in Texas for nigh-on 4 decades is that few things surprise me anymore. In fact, some fact patterns occur so often that it is not unusual for me to have a sense of déjà vu during a new case consultation. Here are three of the more common situations that can mess up even the best-laid plans. The Manipulative Adult Child....

Disinheriting a child in a will can be tricky. You have every right to do so, of course, but your action will be seen by outsiders as unnatural. That is why you want to take the right steps to make the disinheritance stick.   While no method is litigation-proof, there are a couple of strategic points that you may want to consider. Make Your Intentions Clear on Disinheriting You want to be clear...

Lyndon B. Johnson once said that our country is “Not merely a nation but a nation of nations.” Perhaps that is never more clearly noted as when you move from one state to another. The geographic and historical differences of the various states and their peoples shape their individual laws. But one difficulty with that diversity is that there is not one shared body of law with regard to...

Sometimes the law changes and an existing document, such as a will, is caught right in the middle. Consider the saga of the common-law Doctrine of Exoneration. What Is A Doctrine of Exoneration? The Doctrine of Exoneration addresses who is responsible for paying the debt attached to an inherited asset if the will is otherwise silent. Suppose John Smith, a single man, owns a house with a mortgage. John wants his...