Before word-processing programs or typewriters were ever invented wills were handwritten and as long as they meet all of the legal requirements stipulated by the state, those executed in this format continue to be valid. Nonetheless, writing your will by hand opens your estate to legal challenges unlike those faced by professionally-executed documents. By way…
If there were ever a list of cardinal sins in the world of estate planning, dying intestate would be at the top. To die intestate is to pass away with no legal will in place. Those who make this oversight subject their loved ones to the pains of the probate court and the many potential…
Tragically, now is a moment when many are navigating the loss of a loved one. At the time of writing, 472,920 lives have been lost to Covid-19 in the US and that number only continues to grow. Navigating an estate plan in the shadow of a loved one’s passing is an excruciating task. In an…
In December 2020 a wild story began to circulate among estate planning attorneys. The tale told of a friend’s father who had buried $50K in the backyard, intending to pass the money onto his yet unbegotten grandchildren. When the father passed away, his two sons each received half of his assets, and the $50K remained…
Ask any ten people on the street to explain probate court to you and, as less than half of US adults have any sort of estate plan, five will likely have no idea, and the rest will tell you it’s where your family goes to suffer after you die. Neither of these answers is very…
On behalf ESTATE PLANNING LAW GROUP OF GEORGIA, James M. Miskell P.C. posted in estate planning** on Thursday, April 24, 2018. Georgia residents could find themselves incapacitated at any time. This could happen because of a car accident or because old age has lowered a person’s mental abilities. Whether an individual is temporarily or permanently…
On behalf ESTATE PLANNING LAW GROUP OF GEORGIA, James M. Miskell P.C. posted in estate planning** on Monday, April 16, 2018. People who have an estate plan still need to review that plan regularly to make sure it remains up to date. For example, if the estate plan was created in another state, it might…
On behalf ESTATE PLANNING LAW GROUP OF GEORGIA, James M. Miskell P.C. posted in estate planning** on Monday, April 9, 2018. Some people in Georgia might be among the roughly two-thirds of adult Americans who do not have a will. People often postpone creating an estate plan because it forces them to consider their own…
On behalf ESTATE PLANNING LAW GROUP OF GEORGIA, James M. Miskell P.C. posted in estate planning** on Thursday, April 5, 2018. Georgia residents who need to make changes to a trust must do so in a proper manner. First, it is important to determine that the trust can be amended. If the estate holder does…
On behalf ESTATE PLANNING LAW GROUP OF GEORGIA, James M. Miskell P.C. posted in estate planning** on Thursday, March 29, 2018. Many people in Georgia work hard to plan their estates in order to maximize the benefits of their assets for their heirs and beneficiaries. One mechanism that many individuals can use to improve their…
Learn the ABCs of Estate Planning in this informative virtual webinar with attorney James M. Miskell. Discover the estate planning documents that every adult needs to protect their families, their assets, and themselves!