The Plain English Attorney Blog
Far too many attorneys overcomplicate things, making topics convoluted and difficult to understand to the average person. This blog is committed to explaining legal planning topics in an easy to understand format, in plain English. Enjoy the blogs, and please let us know if there is a topic you would like covered.
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One of the biggest frustrations I see in my line of work is when people who are already going through a crisis because of the death or a long-term illness of a family member end up in probate. This time-consuming, frustrating, and paperwork intensive process only compounds the grief and agony...
I’m an estate and Medicaid planning attorney, so why talk about prenups? It’s because it has all of the same hallmarks about planning ahead for the worst while hoping for the best that I do in my law practice, and because I have seen what divorce has done to the adult children of some...
3 Keys to Estate Planning for HD
Huntington’s Disease is a horrible affliction to individuals that also causes upheaval and turmoil within the family. But planning ahead can empower individuals, protect the family, and even provide calm within the family when crisis hits because wishes have...
Who's on the team? Or more specifically who's on your team? When it comes to your legal and financial picture in the long run, and who is working with you and your family, it takes more than one professional to know, understand, and monitor everything. This is why a new business model is emerging...
When it comes to estate planning, there’s always more information coming our way. It’s also not just about tax updates or changes to law, but it can often be just better ways to serve our clients through technological advancements and new platforms. While state bar sponsored...
It's unfortunate, but there are numerous estate planning practices that have become standard operating procedure at law firms that are not necessarily the best thing for the clients or their families. In fact, they seem designed specifically to make more money for the law firm than they are to...
As I was recently reminded while reviewing some legal documents for a prospective client, not all power of attorney forms are created equal. In fact, some people may mistakenly believe they are covered when that is far from the truth. Here are the five big things every good power of attorney...
My law firm and other businesses are committed to providing planning education in the areas of estate, financial, and care assistance planning, and we are adding open livestreams through The Plain English Attorney® YouTube channel. Our 2024 kickoff event is Estate Planning 101 where we will...
"Never, Would I Ever..." Estate Planning
When many people are thinking about estate planning for the first time, it is not exactly the most comfortable thing to think about. Because of that, there are a lot of contingencies, pathways, and options that people fail to consider. But that's...
There are multiple traps, myths, and outright falsehoods when it comes to estate planning for a special needs beneficiary, and it doesn’t help when these lies spread like wildfire. But why do they spread? Usually because someone had a single good or bad experience, and they wrongly...
Sometimes, getting a pile of money can do more harm than good. The younger a gift recipient is, the greater the risk the money is wasted, or, even worse, the money is spent on drugs or to facilitate bad life choices. Unfortunately, the top three gifting options people choose for younger...
