A son who inherited the family business from his father must make his assets available for an appraisal after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined he may have received a “gift” subject to an abatement.
A guardianship task force has recommended that the Indiana Legislature amend state statute to give guardians authority over dispositions if necessary. While the concept received general support in a recent meeting of the Probate Code Study Commission, the question remained: how do you balance the authority of a guardian with that of another party, such as a POA?
Currently, assets in an Indiana legacy trust must vest within 90 years, covering a few generations of heirs. But a proposal before the Probate Code Study Commission would quadruple that time to 360 years, allowing for the creation of Hoosier “dynasty trusts” for the first time.
Under the Indiana Dead Man’s Statute, the deceased can tell no tales, but a recent decision by the state’s Court of Appeals has created uncertainty over when the survivors can speak, particularly where it concerns trusts.
A helpful tool to simplify complex scenarios for clients is the use of visual aids or flowcharts to demonstrate key portions of a will or trust. Particularly in a trust instrument, a diagram of how assets flow is often very helpful to clients and helps them understand things simply.
Rulings on motions to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration and other entities against a now-deceased woman in a transfer penalty dispute were partially reversed Thursday by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
The original will at the center of a six-figure estate fraud case is missing, according to recent court filings in a civil lawsuit. Charities alleging the law firm that handled the estate absconded with the money also have subpoenaed the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission for records in the related ethics case that led to the recent resignation of attorney and one-time judge Robert Monfort.
Most people don’t want to think of their own mortality or the possibility that they may become incapacitated and incapable of expressing their health care wishes. Having an estate plan as well as a plan in place for end-of-life decisions will provide peace of mind for you and your family.
Named after the Internal Revenue Code section that governs them, Section 529 College Savings Plans (529 Plans) are higher-education savings plan trusts established under section 529(b) of the Internal Revenue Code as “qualified tuition programs.” 529 Plans offer tremendous benefits when planning for educational expenses.
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed in part a verdict against a widow in a family dispute stemming from her diversion of $8 million of her late-husband’s trust assets that effectively disinherited his son.
A woman who was awarded half of a $122,000 stock account held by her former husband after the couple entered into a mediated divorce settlement agreement that didn’t mention the account was stripped of that share of the stock account on appeal Wednesday. However, a dissenting judge would have affirmed the grant of money to the ex-wife.
An elderly man living in a nursing home was wrongly denied Medicaid benefits, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday, reversing a decision from the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration.
Marco Moreno was introduced to the idea of economic development by watching a rundown, forgotten neighborhood in Indianapolis get a second chance. He came to the Circle City to study law and was intrigued by the neighborhood redevelopment work. A few years later, his interest was reignited when he learned how regional centers were boosting international funding for projects designed to grow businesses and help communities in the United States. Now the immigration attorney is running a unique regional center in Indianapolis.
With the choose-your-own apocalypse nature of today’s new cycle, it’s hard for young attorneys to prioritize financial health. To that end, James Munder of Northwestern Mutual gave a great presentation last month on creating a financial plan to get through a market recession.
The Supreme Court on Monday preserved an important tool used by securities regulators to recoup ill-gotten gains in fraud cases.
Indianapolis-based Barnes & Thornburg now has a New York address, opening an office in the Big Apple as part of its plan to grow its footprint and expand its corporate, litigation and white collar practices.
The Indiana Supreme Court is taking steps to help trial courts handle the coming backlog of cases, extending certain emergency operations due to the COVID-19 public health emergency through as late as January 2021.
The Indiana Court of Appeals in an interlocutory appeal has affirmed for a brother in a sibling squabble over Southern Indiana real estate and property left by their mother after her death.
We return to the scenario presented in a previous article, “Premortem validation could help avert will, estate contests” (Indiana Lawyer, Oct. 16, 2019). Recall that the mother (“mom”) changed her will six months before her death, giving the entire estate to her caregiver-daughter (“daughter”) and leaving nothing for her out-of-town son (“son”). Since Indiana has not yet enacted pre-mortem validation statutes for wills or trusts, daughter and son must argue the validity of the final will in court after mom has passed. This article discusses how the scenario (and a similar one dealing with a revocable trust) might play out under current Indiana law.
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (“SECURE Act”) was enacted on December 20, 2019. The SECURE Act dramatically changes how an individual should structure his or her estate plan if there are qualified retirement accounts involved.