The Counselor Blog

Todd's Estate and Busi... Todd Hallock Todd's Estate and Busi... Todd Hallock

WARNING – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK! The Cautionary Tale of the Case of Ms. Aldrich

"Obviously, the cost of drafting a will through the use of a pre-printed form is likely substantially lower than the cost of hiring a knowledgeable lawyer. However, as illustrated by this case, the ultimate cost of utilizing such a form to draft one’s will has the potential to far surpass the cost of hiring a lawyer at the outset."

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Are You of Sound Mind? - Planning for Potential Contests to Your Estate

I just finished the new John Grisham book Sycamore Row. I am not normally a big fan of legal fiction because I spend so much of each day in legal reality; however, this story intrigued me because it involved a dispute over an estate. The story begins when a wealthy businessman, Seth Hubbard, who is dying from cancer, commits suicide. Quickly we learn that just days before his death he had revoked a will that had been carefully prepared to provide significant tax benefits and replaced it with what is known as a “holographic” will. A holographic will is a will that is in the handwriting of the person making the will (the Testator) and the will signed by the Testator generally without witnesses

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My DIY Project - Gone Awry

I was working the other day on what I thought was a “minor” repair in or bathroom. Eight hours later and having already spent more than I expected I was faced with the prospect of bringing in a professional to “fix” my do-it-yourself (DIY) project. I had all the right tools, but what I lacked was the experience and know-how to complete the project correctly. This caused me to reflect on the oft asked DIY question when it comes to estate planning.

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Should You Do It Yourself?

A recent Consumer Reports article looking at three of the more recognized brands in this area stated: “All three are better than nothing if you have no will. But unless your needs are very simple—say, you want to leave everything to your spouse with no other provisions—none of them is likely to meet your needs. And we found problems with all three . . . .”

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