What is estate planning, and why is it important? In this video, Christopher Small, owner of CMS Law Firm, breaks down the essentials of estate planning in an easy-to-understand way. Learn about: The two key scenarios estate planning covers: when you’re alive but incapacitated and when you pass away. Important documents like powers of attorney, healthcare directives, wills, and trusts. Why a revocable living trust can be a game-changer for avoiding probate and customizing distributions. Whether you’re just getting started…
I alluded to this a couple of newsletters ago, but our team has been growing! We have not one, but TWO new attorneys on our team! If you’re currently working with us, you’ve probably seen them popping up on our email communications with you as we get them integrated into the team, and today I wanted to formally introduce them! First, we’ve got Liz Hebel. Liz has been practicing for about 5 years and has been looking for an opportunity…
I know you all are probably locked into the Super Bowl right now (hopefully the game gets a little closer) so I thought I’d give you something quick to digest. Revocable trusts and income taxes. It’s that time of the year when everyone starts organizing all their tax documents to see if they get a refund, have to write a check, and whether or not it feels like a lot or a little. And if you have a revocable trust,…
Let’s just cut right to the chase on this one – YES, you should discuss your estate with your kids. Trust provisions limiting distributions over time at the discretion of and with the oversight of a trustee are helpful. Trust provisions providing for incentives for doing things you want your kids to do will express your wishes (and probably result in them sleepwalking through the things you want them to do). And there’s no better way to prepare your kids…
Happy Sunday! I had a couple of conversations about this last week, so I thought I’d quickly remind all of you with kids out there – some day they are going to become adults too. And I’m not talking like, “they’ve finally moved out!” adults. I’m talking about the day they turn 18 and legally become an adult. The moment that happens, they receive all of the privacy rights and protections that you and I have – which is great…
A shorty but a goody today. If you own an LLC this one’s for you. If you recall, last year a new requirement went into effect for all LLC owners – you HAD to fill out a beneficial ownership information form with the government. If you did not file you faced potential fines and even jail time. The deadline for that filing was 12/31/2024… until it wasn’t. A court in Texas ruled the law unconstitutional and paused the filing requirements…
Happy New Year! Hope your new year has started off great. Mine was slightly auspicious, clouded in the fog of a really strong head cold (which I hear is going around)… but I’m on the mend! Today I wanted to talk about the most powerful (and underestimated) estate planning doc – the Power of Attorney. See, most people think estate planning is centered on death – where do you want everything to go and who do you want to be…
