Bielski Law Office, Ltd.

Same-Sex Spouses on Death Certificates

A recent case in Florida illustrates why same-sex couples should not rely solely on marriage rights and the laws on intestate succession for estate planning purposes.

The Supreme Court might have legalized same-sex marriage throughout the country.  However, advocates and observers know that has not eliminated the need to fight to exercise those rights in some places.

One of the latest examples comes from Florida.

In this case, two men had lived together in Florida for 42 years. They were legally married in New York in 2012. A year later, one of them passed away in Florida.

Since Florida did not recognize same-sex marriage, the death certificate listed the deceased man as single. After the Supreme Court's decision, the surviving spouse requested that the death certificate be reissued to list the deceased as married at the time of death as Slate reports in "Federal Judge Rules Florida Must Add Same-Sex Spouses to Death Certificates."

The state of Florida refused to reissue the death certificate without a specific court order to do so for each death certificate. A federal judge has ruled against the state and ordered that it must reissue all death certificates to list same-sex spouses for couples who were legally married before Supreme Court's decision.

While this case turned out well for those affected, it illustrates that same-sex couples cannot necessarily rely on proper enforcement of their marriage rights. It is still advisable to have estate plans to protect same-sex spouses.  This can help make sure that some states do not throw up roadblocks to inheritances.

Reference: Slate (March 24, 2017) "Federal Judge Rules Florida Must Add Same-Sex Spouses to Death Certificates."

The Earl and the Pop Star

A British lord is connected to a pop star who is notorious for partying uncontrollably. However, it is probably not in the way that you might think.

Upon hearing that the Earl of Cardigan, whose ancestor led the famed Charge of the Light Brigade, has a connection to a pop star best known for partying hard, your first thought would probably be that an older aristocrat had started dating or married a much younger woman. Your opinion probably would not change, if you learned that the connection between the Earl and the pop star had led to three separate trustees of the Earl's estate stepping down.

However, in this case, your thought would not even be close to the truth, as the Telegraph reported in "Earl of Cardigan's lawyer quit in latest storm to hit troubled estate."

It appears that a trustee of the estate rented a house on the Earl's estate to the British pop star Pete Doherty, who is notorious for throwing parties and causing large amounts of damage.  It is not surprising that is exactly what Doherty is alleged to have done at the estate.

The Earl of Cardigan was not happy. As a result, two estate trustees stepped down three years ago. The Earl sued them last year. The latest bit of news is that another attorney acting as a trustee for the estate, has also stepped down and has been vague about the reasons for doing so.

It is not clear what will eventually happen with this estate.

If the Earl cannot get along with his attorneys, he might find it much harder to get new ones to work as trustees for his estate.

Reference: Telegraph (March 13, 2017) "Earl of Cardigan's lawyer quit in latest storm to hit troubled estate."

 

Zappa Family Feud

The long and contentious battle between the children of Frank Zappa continues to be strange.

Since his death in 1993, Frank Zappa's children have waged a curious fight over the use of their father's name and music. It is a fight that has seen many tabloid headlines written and almost as many legal motions.

At the center of the battle appears to be Dweezil Zappa's desire to go on tour and play his father's music for live audiences. He has previously attempted to tour under the name "Zappa Plays Zappa."

Dweezil, however, does not have control over the estate.  The estate is controlled by his younger siblings Ahmet and Diva Zappa.

Dweezil has previously contended that Ahmet and Diva refuse to let him use the family name and their father's music while on tour, without paying them royalties.

The younger siblings disagree with that claim, as TMZ reports in "Frank Zappa Family War Dweezil vs. Ahmet and Diva."

Ahmet and Diva Zappa have now filed a motion with the court for what appears to be a strange purpose. They seek permission of the court to create a website, specifically to refute their brother's claims.

For their part, these siblings contend that they have always been willing to let Dweezil do what he wants for a small fee of one dollar. They also state that Dweezil is tarnishing the family name by spreading what they call lies.  Therefore, they need to counter the lies.

It is not clear why they would need the court’s permission to do this.

This feud over their father's estate has gone on for so long and is so strange, that it is unlikely about the music.

Sometimes, children just do not get along.

Reference: TMZ (March 13, 2017) "Frank Zappa Family War Dweezil vs. Ahmet and Diva."

Expect Less than You Think for Your Inheritance

While the details change somewhat from survey to survey, there is something that appears to hold true in almost all studies about inheritances.  It is that parents and their children have far different expectations about how much the children will inherit.

Most people do not really know how many assets their parents have. They do not know exactly how much their parents have saved for retirement. They do not know how much their parents earn at work.

When you get right down to it, adult children do not know any of the important details about their parents' finances.

There is something inherently American about not talking about money, especially how much we have and make, even with close family members. This even holds true when discussing estates and how much parents plan to leave their children as inheritances.

Only 21% of parents have told their children what to expect as an inheritance, according to Financial Advisor in "Hoping For An Inheritance? You May Not Get As Much As You Expect."

The big problem is that most of the time, children think they will inherit more from their parents than they actually will. When people are disappointed with the size of their inheritances,  it is when they start to think about fighting other family members over an estate.

It is rare to learn of an estate battle started by someone who gets more than they thought they would. On the other hand, it is not at all rare to see estate litigation brought by someone who gets less.

Estate litigation is extremely expensive and emotionally taxing for all family members involved.

To avoid it in your own family, you should consider letting your children know what they can expect to receive from you as an inheritance.

Reference: Financial Advisor (March 15, 2017) "Hoping For An Inheritance? You May Not Get As Much As You Expect."

Getting Rid of Old Trust Terms

It used to be that once you executed an irrevocable trust, you were more or less stuck with its terms. That is no longer the case.

Irrevocable trusts are often far superior to revocable trusts for many reasons, not the least of which is taxes. However, the big drawback to irrevocable trusts is in the name. They are irrevocable. Once the trust is properly executed, it is supposed to be set in stone.

If circumstances change and you no longer like the terms of the trust, that is too bad. You are stuck with it.

This has always caused many people to be wary of irrevocable trusts, especially younger people who expect many things in their lives to change.

No need to worry? Irrevocable trusts may no longer be truly irrevocable, as Forbes explained in "Old Money, New Bottle: Decant If You Don't Like the Terms Of An Old Trust."

 A total of 25 states now allow old trusts to be decanted.

This process entails taking all of the assets from an old trust and putting them in an entirely new trust with different terms. It is technically the trustee who is allowed to do this. It is supposed to be for the benefit of the trust beneficiaries.

Interestingly, the trustee does not need to have permission from a court and often does not even need to inform the beneficiaries. The different states that allow decanting have different rules about what trust terms can be changed in the new trust. You will, therefore, want to seek out experts to make sure you decant in a state that allows you to do so.

If you have an old irrevocable trust and would like to change the terms, you now have options. Talk to an estate planning attorney to learn more.

Reference: Forbes (March 16, 2017) "Old Money, New Bottle: Decant If You Don't Like the Terms Of An Old Trust."

Pettiness Costs Brothers Entire Inheritance

Not all disputes over an estate are worth bringing. A recent case from the U.K. illustrates why.

It is not unusual for people to not get along well with their stepparents. It is the source of many family feuds over estates when adult children of the deceased think a stepparent has received a larger portion of the estate than is fair. This is especially true, if the estate plan has been changed from a previous one to give the stepparent a larger share.

Because this is common, it is perhaps not surprising that two brothers in the U.K. were upset when their father left their stepmother a larger share of the estate than either one of them received. Their father had after all changed his will to give the stepmother more. The brothers took the position that he lacked the legal capacity to do so.

They initiated a legal battle to have their father's will thrown out and an old one reinstated that would have given them more of the estate.

What is unusual about this case is the amount of money that was at stake.

The will the brothers wanted disregarded only gave the stepmother £25,000 (approximately $30,000) more than under the will they wanted reinstated. The judge in the case was not amused.

After ruling in the stepmother's favor, the judge ordered the brothers to pay all of the legal costs of the case, which was enough to wipe out everything they inherited.

The Daily Mail reported on this story in "Farmer's sons lose their ENTIRE £200,000 inheritance from father's will in doomed legal bid to stop their stepmother getting an extra £25,000."

Before starting an estate battle, it is important to ask whether doing so is really worth it. Legal fights are not always worth the trouble, even if you do not like your stepparent.

Reference: Daily Mail (March 17, 2017) "Farmer's sons lose their ENTIRE £200,000 inheritance from father's will in doomed legal bid to stop their stepmother getting an extra £25,000."