It can be hard to move through your daily life after someone you love dies. It may be even harder to embark on the complex tasks required to put their financial affairs in order. However, you can’t afford to put that off.
When the Spanish painter Pablo Picasso died of a heart attack on April 8, 1973, he left behind not only a huge artistic oeuvre of 50,000 works, but enough family drama to cover several generations.
Beneficiaries of a trust typically pay taxes on the distributions they receive from the trust’s income, rather than the trust itself paying the tax. However, these beneficiaries are not subject to taxes on distributions from the trust’s principal.
The heirs to Henry Ford II – the eldest grandson of legendary Henry Ford – filed a legal challenge against their late patriarch’s attorney, Frank Chopin, who is now the champion of Ford’s widow, Kathleen DuRoss Ford, 80.
If you want a legal plan that avoids probate court, there are two options: first, an enhanced life estate deed, and second a living trust. Each has its pros and cons.