Love, Marriage, and Remarriage: Common Estate Planning Questions from Blended Families

Posted on April 6, 2015 by Pasternak & Fidis

In Divorce & Family Law, Estate Planning, Premarital Agreements | Tagged assets, blended families, estate planning, estate taxes, fiduciary, future inheritance, premarital agreement, surviving spouse, trust

Estate planning for blended families presents particular concerns. Questions about estate taxes, picking the right fiduciary, and how to best provide for loved ones are issues that all people face when preparing their estate plans. But the answers become more complicated as spouses, ex-spouses, children, and step-children become part of the picture. Here are some […]

How Much Financial Disclosure is Adequate for a Valid Premarital Agreement?

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Linda J. Ravdin

In Divorce & Family Law, Premarital Agreements | Tagged appeal, assets, business, dispute, finance, financial disclosure statement, future inheritance, liabilities, litigation, marital rights, negotiation, validity, written disclosure

Too Much is Enough. Two recent cases, one from Maryland and one from Virginia, point up the importance of financial disclosure in premarital agreements. In each case the challenging spouse launched a multi-faceted, and ultimately unsuccessful, attack on the agreement. Inadequate financial disclosure was but one facet of the attack. Had the financial disclosure been done […]

Powers of Appointment: A Powerful Estate Planning Tool

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Stephanie Perry

In Estate Planning, Uncategorized | Tagged appointee, assets, beneficiary, creditor, donor, estate, inheritance, interest, permissible power of appointment, powerholder, property, trust, trustee, will

What is a Power of Appointment? A power of appointment is a power given to a person (oftentimes under a trust) which enables the person to designate who will receive property or an interest in property. The person who creates the power of appointment is the donor; the holder of the power is the powerholder; and […]

Premarital Agreements and the Business Owner

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Linda J. Ravdin

In Business Law, Divorce & Family Law, Premarital Agreements | Tagged antenuptial agreement, appraisal, appreciation, assets, book value, business, confidentiality, dispute resolution, exclusive rights, fair market value, fiance, financial disclosure, financial security, negotiation, net worth, non-owner, owner, premarital agreement, prenup, prenuptial agreement, property, protection, revenues, spouse, statement, terms, validity, valuation, value

Some people planning to marry want to enter into a premarital agreement. A business owner may have particular concerns that may cause him or her to consider a premarital agreement. There are a variety of issues the lawyer for the business owner needs to pay special attention to. Why a business owner may seek a premarital agreement. A business owner may want a […]

Are Trust Assets Vulnerable to Claims of Creditors (Including a Divorcing Spouse)?

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Oren Goldberg

In Divorce & Family Law, Estate Planning, Trust Administration | Tagged assets, beneficiary, discretionary trust, divorce, equitable division, equitable division of marital assets, hybrid trust, independent trustee, marital assets, nonmarital assets, separate property, spendthrift, spouse's obligation, support trust, Tannen v. Tannen, trust

A question commonly raised by clients during the estate planning process is: “What can we do to ensure that the assets we give to our children will not be available to the child’s spouse at divorce?” (One answer is for the adult child to have a premarital agreement. See “Premarital Agreements and the Young Couple” […]