Estate planning is not just one afternoon of dedicated dictation. You have a lot to work through when it comes to communicating with your family and making sure your will describes your wishes clearly. In the event that you change your mind about any of it, you may...
When people create trusts, they must appoint trustees to own and manage the assets in the trusts. Grantors must consider the capabilities of the appointees and the legal responsibilities required of trustees when deciding who to appoint. The following tips may help...
There is a common misconception that including a trust in one's estate plan is something that only benefits wealthy individuals. While it is true those with large amounts of assets stand to benefit from using a trust, so too do many other types of people. If you...
Your wishes may change over the years, which means your will may change as well. There are several ways to update your will including making a whole new will to replace the old one or going through the process of altering your current will. Another method is to make a...
There are multitudes of ways to organize your estate, and trusts are a powerful component of that. There are many things that trusts can do that wills cannot, and most estate planners benefit from making use of trusts. The two varieties of a living trust are revocable...
There are many reasons to create a trust. You probably have family members you want to provide for or you want to spare your family a lengthy period in probate. You may even know who you want as your trustee. Perhaps you wish to name a son or daughter. However,...
As the parent of a Virginia child who has special needs, you may need to make extra efforts to protect your child and make sure he or she is able to get by once you die. You may also count on government programs, such as Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid, to...
Virginia and many other states have adopted a version of the Uniform Trust Code. This law establishes certain obligations toward trust beneficiaries, requiring that they get the necessary information about the trust to protect themselves. However, for various reasons,...
There are multiple ways to attempt to avoid probate including the use of beneficiary designations on life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and other similar accounts. Other ways to avoid probate are through joint ownership, however, joint ownership may not be...
The Law Office of Deborah N Arthur has undergone changes in the past few years that we are excited to tell you about in our first blog posting.Deborah's daughter, Rebecca, graduated from law school and passed the Virginia State Bar Exam in 2012 - joining the office as...
