Trusts

minor children
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How to Leave Assets to Minor Children from Austin Estate Planning Lawyer Liz Nielsen

Most parents want to make sure their children are provided for in the event something happens to them while the children are still minors. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and good friends sometimes want to leave gifts to beloved young children too. Unfortunately, good intentions and poor planning often have unintended results. Don’t make these common, expensive mistakes. Instead, here’s how to both protect and provide for the children you love.

Adult Children
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How to Leave Assets to Adult Children from Austin Estate Planning Lawyer Liz Nielsen

When considering how to leave assets to adult children, the first step is to decide how much each one should receive. Most parents want to treat their children fairly, but this doesn’t necessarily mean they should receive equal shares of your estate. For example, it may be desirable to give more to a child who is a teacher than to one who has a successful business, or to “compensate” a child who has been a primary caregiver.

Successor Trustee
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What do Successor Trustees and Executors Do? from Austin Estate Planning Lawyer Liz Nielsen

Executor’s Duties An executor, sometimes called a personal representative, is the person who is named in a will, appointed by the court, and responsible for probating the will and settling the estate. Depending on the state, an executor may work under court supervision or, as is often seen in Texas, may use so-called “independent” administration for […]

Payable-On-Death Accounts
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Are Payable-On-Death Accounts Right For You? from Austin Estate Planning Lawyer Liz Nielsen

A payable-on-death account, also called a POD account or sometimes a transfer-on-death (TOD) account, is a common way to keep bank and investment accounts out of probate, the court-supervised process that oversees distributing a deceased person’s property. Most people want to avoid their estate going through probate because their heirs will receive the inheritance faster, privately, and at lower cost.

Is a POD account an appropriate solution for your needs? Let’s examine what POD accounts do and how they fit into the overall picture.

Estate Planning Process
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Why Your Estate Planning Project Must Morph into a Process from Austin Estate Planning Lawyer Liz Nielsen

Many people put their estate plan on their to-do list as a one-time project: “Create estate plan” or “Meeting with lawyer 10:30 a.m. Thursday for estate plan.”

Thinking of your estate plan as a single project or task to complete and move off your list is a common approach – but it’s also an approach that can land you in considerable hot water. Here’s why it’s essential to view your estate plan as a process, rather than a project.

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