Why COVID-19 Has Made Many Want to Avoid Probate
Why COVID-19 Has Made Many Look to Avoid Probate The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted many aspects of our lives, making many people look to do whatever they can to avoid in-person meetings. This also applies to probate, the process by which an estate is settled. Thankfully, there are some legal moves that...
The Importance of Health Care Proxies During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Why You Need an HCP Now More Than Ever Despite many medical professionals and estate planning lawyers stressing the importance of a health care proxy (HCP) and related documents, only about 25 percent of adults actually have them. In fact, many adults never even establish an HCP until they find themselves...
COVID-19 Has Rushed Many Americans Into Hurriedly Executing Wills
Avoid Social Distancing Mistakes When Rushing a Will With more than 16,000 deaths from COVID-19 in New Jersey as of early October, the pandemic has led many to think about mortality. Fearing the worst, lots of Americans have rushed to finalize wills over the past several months. Whether you've already executed a will...
How Siblings Can Deal With Estates During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Creative Ways Siblings Can Deal With Estate Planning During COVID-19 According to Johns Hopkins University, as of October 2, 2020, more than 7 million Americans have been infected with COVID-19, and at least 209,000 have died as a result of their infections. The COVID-19 pandemic shows no signs of stopping, which...
COVID-19 Has Inspired Many to Include Charities in Their Estates
How COVID-19 Is Affecting Charitable Giving in Estate Plans According to a Fidelity Charitable survey on philanthropic individuals, the COVID-19 crisis has inspired 25% of donors to increase their charitable contributions. This change has a strong generational component, with 46% of millennials stating that they will...
Will COVID Make It Easy for Fiduciaries to Steal?
Ways Bad Fiduciaries May Take Advantage of the COVID Crisis During the past two decades, there has been a nearly 75% increase in trust and estate malpractice claims. Therefore, unfortunately, bad fiduciaries are more common than you may think. Being aware of the way unethical fiduciaries can take advantage of COVID...
How COVID-19 Is Affecting Business-Related Estate Planning
COVID-19 Pandemic Update: Business-Related Estate Planning Impact There are more than 30 million small businesses in the United States, and surveys reveal that more than 60% of the owners want their companies to continue succeeding after their passing. Despite that, only around 15% of small businesses survive the...
Is There a Time Limit on Your Right to Contest a Will?
Understanding How the Statute of Limitations Applies to Wills Roughly 3% of all wills are contested each year. Part of the reason for this very low will contest rate is the fact that you do not have much time at all to challenge a will. Even during the pandemic, you need to be prepared to start the will contest...
Has COVID Changed the Typical Asset Distribution Process?
What to Expect From the Asset Distribution Process During COVID-19 After someone passes away, their friends, family, and other beneficiaries do not immediately collect any bequeathed items. Instead, it takes about two months to a year, on average, for assets to actually be distributed. During COVID-19, there are some...
COVID May Be Causing More Conflicts of Interest in Estate Planning
Should You Worry About Conflicts of Interest During COVID? Did you know that estate planning is the legal field most likely to encounter conflicts of interest? A conflict of interest happens when a lawyer is trying to represent multiple connected clients, and it can lead to big issues. Being aware of how COVID...