Happy Sunday!

Before we get to today’s topic, I do have an announcement to make.

CMS Law Firm, like all of us, is not static. People come and people go over time for all sorts of different reasons.

And today I’m sad to announce that Mitchell Aoki, an attorney here at the firm, has left the team. He was a great guy and a great lawyer and he’s got a great future ahead of him.

He just isn’t here anymore.

If you are a current or former client of Mitchell’s, have no fear. We’ve already assigned all of his clients to myself (pretty much all active estate planning clients) or Liz Brown or Ashley McAlhaney, the other attorneys here at the firm.

His email is being monitored, so don’t worry about your message getting lost in the shuffle.

Okay, moving on, let’s talk about the wrong way to protect money for young kids.

We see this enough in our potential client meetings to warrant talking about it from time to time.

Usually the conversation goes something like this: “I want to give everything to my sister and then she’s going to keep it safe and use it for my kids.”

While, on the surface, this seems like a great idea, it is wrought with trouble.

First, if you die, and then shortly thereafter your sister dies (let’s say 6 months later) that money you’ve given to your sister for your kids is now hers – and it’s going to go wherever she directed it (her spouse, her kids, her favorite charity, etc.).

The likelihood it stays with your kids is tiny.

Second, after you die if she declares bankruptcy, or is sued, or gets divorced (and dropped your money into her joint checking account) a lot of that money could be gone.

Poof.

Third, and this is the one no one ever thinks about but happens way more often than you think, is loss of mental capacity.

People don’t lose capacity just through old age. It can happen under many different circumstances.

A medical condition (think brain tumor). Substance abuse. Unforeseen tragedy.

The loss of capacity doesn’t have to be permanent. It just needs to be enough to create a situation where your assets are gone.

The right way to do this is with a Revocable Living Trust. It’s not hard. It’s not super expensive. And the upside is tremendous.

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Christopher Small
Owner
CMS Law Firm LLC

PS – we love referrals. If you know someone that could use our help, let them know about us!