How to Handle Social Media Accounts at the Death of a Loved One

Social media accounts like Facebook or Twitter set up private contracts between the user and the company. These private contracts can make it difficult to deal with a person's social media account once they have died. Each social media company looks to their private policies when dealing with a deceased person's account. As survivors of a decased person try working with the social media companys, they are finding there are not many laws out there covering social media death issues. A very interesting article in the Wall Street Journal titled, "Deaths Pose Test for Facebook" by Steve Eder covers this facinating issue.

Estate Planning And The 529 Plan

A 529 education plan is a great way to start saving money for a child's education and can be a valuable estate planning tool. For estate planning purposes, a 529 education plan can be used to reduce estate taxes if estate taxes are an issue for you or prepare for your child's education in the event you die before your child becomes old enough to get a secondary education. In estate planning, it is important to look at all the "what if" scenarios and try to prepare for those scenarios. It is the same with a 529 plan. One "what if" scenario that must be addressed is what if the 529 funds outlast the child's 529 education plan. The Wall Street Journal has a great article covering this very "what if" scenario. The article entitled, "What to Do With Leftovers in 529 Plans," written by Georgette Jasen gives options enabling an individual to make an educated decision if a 529 plan ends up with "leftover" funds.

Who Gets Dad's Old Anvil

Once both parents have died, the children have a big job ahead of them. It litterly can take years to wade through all the accumulated stuff. And the stuff might really be valuable (not just monetarily). The sentimental value of a certain item can help ease the lose of the loved one as family reminisces, or it can cause the dreaded family fight that keeps family members from talking to each other for years. An article written by Kelly Greene of the Wall Street Journal entitled, "The Pearls Are Mine!" gives some good suggestions for working through the mountain of stuff in an timely and friendly way.

Definition of the Week: Grantor

Grantor: A grantor is a person "granting" or transferring assets to a trust. Some practitioners and state statutes use the word "settlor" or "trustor" or "maker" or "creator." At Hughes Estate Group, we use the word used by the Internal Revenue Service, the tax courts, and most state courts: "grantor."

Joke of the Week

An elderly couple is lying in bed one morning having just awakened from a good night's sleep. He takes her hand and she responds, "Don't touch me!"

"Why not," he says.

She answers back, "Because I'm dead."

The husband says to her, "What on earth are you talking about? We're both lying here in bed together and talking to one another."

The wife says, "Not so, I'm definitely dead."

Her husband insists, "You're not dead. What in the world makes you think you are dead?"

His wife answers, "I know I'm dead because I woke up this morning and nothing hurts."

A Second Marriage And Children Of The First Marriage Fight With Murder Thrown In

Judge Patrick Maqubela, acting judge in the Western Cape High Court, was suffocated June 5, 2009 in his Bantry Bay flat. He wife of his second marriage, Thandi Maqubela, has been accused of co-conspiring to kill him.

At the time of his death, Thandi Maqubela declared her husband had died intestate or without a testamentary document in place. Later, she declared that she had found his will. The difference between how Mr. Maqubela's R20m estate would be distributed by the laws of intestate versus by a will it hugh.

According to the intestate laws of South Gauteng, Thandi Maqubela would receive half the estate and Mr. Maqubela's five children would receive the other half to be divided in five equal shares. With the will, the two children from Mr. Maqubela's first marriage are completely cut out of the will and Thandi Maqubela's daughter from a previous marriage is named a beneficiary. Mr. Maqubela's son from his first marriage, Duma, is contesting the validity of the will saying that he cannot believe his father would disinherit him and his sister, Patiwe.

A full article reporting on the situation can be read here.

Definition of the Week: Trustee

Trustee: The trustee is the person who manages and distributes trust assets for the benefit of beneficiaries.

Unique Coffins Seen Around The World

I read a very interesting article in the Wall Street Journal that mentioned the kinds of coffins being made now-a-days for people to be buried in. The article explores the human rituals that attend death and what people sometimes are buried in. To quote one paragraph, "We bury our loved ones in the ground. We burn them in fire. In some cultures, we leave corpses as carrion, inviting the birds to pick the bones dry. In others, we hang the dead in trees or stow them in caves. In naval circles, we consign them to the ocean." The article mentions an airplane coffin made for a grandmother who never had a chance to fly in an airplane. It really is a fun article to read. The full article can be found here.

Joke of the Week

Excerpt from the classified section of a city newspaper:

Dog for sale: eats anything and is fond of children.

Movie Review: Snowball Express

Here is another inheritance movie. Disney's classic, Snowball Express (1972), is just plain fun. The story is about the crazy adventures a family has when they move to Colorado to try and make an inherited run down hotel a success. Of course, there are the good and bad guys and the ultimate "snowmobile" race to see which side wins.

The movie can be found here.

Moving To A New State With Estate Documents In Place

If you have estate documents (wills, trusts, powers of attorney, etc.) and you move to a new state, it is always good to have an estate planning attorney in the new state review your documents. A general rule of thumb is wills and trusts will less likely need to be amended with a move to a new state. Powers of attorney, especially health care, will more likely need to be amended to meet the new state's requirements.

Definition of the Week: Simple Distribution Plan

Simple Distribution Plan: A simple distribution plan calls for immediate distribution of assets to your beneficiaries at your death. A simple distribution plan is relatively easy to draft and can sometimes be done without a trust. Because it is easier to prepare, a simple distribution plan is less expensive than a complex distribution plan.