Another irrevocable trust bites the dust. Surviving spouse failed to fund the bypass trust upon her husband’s death. Trustee engaged DeAngelis Legal to negotiate and draft a non-judicial settlement agreement between the trustees and beneficiaries. The agreement provided for a revised allocation of the assets upon the surviving spouse’s death and a release of claims [...]
Trust Administration Administrating a trust post-death should be as easy as your successor trustee accepting the responsibility for the trust, taking control of the assets, satisfying creditors and following the trust’s distribution provisions. Unfortunately, we are seeing longer administration times, most of which could have been greatly reduced with minimal upfront planning. Recent examples we [...]
Assisted personal representative with the administration of an estate and trust. For the past couple of years DeAngelis Legal assisted the personal representative and trustee gather control over the decedent's assets, liquidate them and this December deliver the final checks to several charitable organizations. The administration was complicated by the failure of the decedent to [...]
SECURE Act Impact on Trusts While we were focused on the impeachment hearings, Congress and the President were busy passing the SECURE Act. The Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019 and is effective January 1, 2020. In addition to funding federal agencies through September, the SECURE Act impacts trusts by reducing the [...]
DeAngelis Legal represented the personal representative with a simple probate of a will. Sister died and left a will naming her brother as personal representative and waived bond. DeAngelis Legal prepared, filed and obtained approval of the informal probate of a will application with the Maricopa County Probate Court. Upon the Letters of Personal Representative [...]
Represented Scottsdale individual with respect to the termination of an irrevocable trust. DeAngelis Legal reviewed the options with the client, prepared a non-judicial settlement agreement to surrender a life insurance policy that was no longer necessary and terminate an irrevocable trust.
Estate Planning Update July, 2019 2019 Annual Gift Tax Exclusion: remains at $15,000 per donor, per donee. 2019 Gift and Estate Tax Exclusion: $11,400,000 per donor through 2025, see #6 below. Marital Deduction for Transfers to U.S. Spouse: unlimited. 2019 Generation Skipping Tax Exclusion: $11,400,000 per donor through 2025, see #6 below. Top rate for [...]
Beneficiaries were the victims of bank fraud in Phoenix. Bank employee embezzled funds from an irrevocable trust for his personal use. DeAngelis Legal worked with the beneficiaries and the bank to identity fraudulent transactions, complete an audit of the accounts and recover 100% of misappropriated funds and reimbursement of attorney fees incurred.
Scottsdale decedent named a trust as the beneficiary of his large IRA. Upon his death the terms of the trust called for the beneficiaries to receive their share of the trust outright. Trustee desired to create separate accounts for the IRA, so each beneficiary could determine whether to take the proceeds immediately or continue the [...]
Represented successor trustee with trust administration. DeAngelis Legal represented parents with creation of a trust that established sub-trusts for their adult children upon their deaths. DeAngelis Legal assisted the successor trustee with negotiating and closing the sale of a large Paradise Valley residence, distributing personal property to the beneficiaries, interviewing and selecting an investment advisor, [...]
