Marriage and aging often trigger people to modify their estate plans. What about unmarried couples? We often think of cohabiters as being young, although over 4 million are over the age of fifty, 900,000 of whom are over the age of 65.
The trend follows a combination of factors including rising divorce rates, aging baby boomers, and more expansive views of relationships. Living together brings companionship, intimacy, dispels loneliness and may provide economic stability. Unlike marriage, living together does not interfere with government or pension benefits, it does not render your partner ineligible for Medicaid, and you are not responsible for your partner’s personal debt.
Now let’s address the unpleasant: One of you gets sick, hospitalized, or dies without having granted legal authority (power of attorney) over assets, bank accounts, insurance policies, and financial and medical decision-making. Unlike marriage, there is no “default” authority. Without proper documentation, unmarried partners could even be restricted from hospital visits.
The situation only becomes more complicated when the seniors have adult children from prior marriages. This trend emphasizes the need for couples to communicate with each other and their children about long-term care planning. Finally, marriage has both income and estate tax implications that should be discussed with professional advisors.
In many ways, cohabitation among older people remains improvisational. While estate planning is important for every adult, regardless of their age or marital status, older, unmarried couples should take special note to update their estate plans to reflect their specific relationship, as well as personal and financial goals.
It may be time to review your estate plan. Care for your loved ones and eliminate the additional stresses of probate and uncertainty.
Let’s talk about it. Call estate attorney Charles (Chuck) Bendig at 614.878.7777
While designing an estate plan, many people set up trusts to manage their financial affairs. A trust may specify a “personal representative.” In this post, we outline the responsibilities of the “personal representative.”
Ohio Estate Disputes
If you have been appointed as a dependent administrator or an independent executor, you will have certain fiduciary duties. There is a duty of competency, a duty of disclosure, a duty of loyalty, and a duty of impartiality. These duties are intended to defend the interests of the heirs of the Decedent’s estate, the estate creditors, and the taxing authorities.
The non-exhaustive list includes:
– The executor/administrator should keep the heirs of the estate informed of the administration and use their best efforts to promptly collect the assets and administer and settle the estate.
– The executor/administrator must always be in a position to account for all revenue received, money spent, assets sold/purchased, and all other matters that directly or indirectly affect the estate.
– The executor/administrator must refrain from commingling the Decedent’s property with his/her own or that of any of your businesses or the Decedent’s business interests. Commingling usually is done with cash, and it is imperative that the executor/administrator does not commingle the Decedent’s funds with funds that are not part of the estate, not even for a day.
– The executor/administrator must not leave funds uninvested.
– The personal representative must refrain from self-dealing with any portion of the Decedent’s estate.
Compliance can be accomplished by setting up suitable estate accounts and managing the estate accounting in the manner detailed by your estate attorney.
Also, to help guide you through the process, Executor.com has created a list of the top 4 online tools for executors.
While the causes of dissension and fighting are complex, here are the top 5*.
1. Local Sibling versus Away Siblings
Scenario: A “local” sibling provides care and support for a parent at the end of life, while the other sibling(s) is “away,” -physically or psychologically. Typically the local sibling “helps” or controls aspects of the elderly parent’s life while growing a feeling of entitlement. For convenience, the local sibling may have been added as a signatory to the parent’s checking account. The distant sibling(s) suspects undue influence on the part of the local sibling, and a dispute arises, often creating contentious litigation.
2. Blended Families
Multiple marriages, children from previous relationships can present complexity and that will challenge simple estate distribution. For example, the husband may predecease the wife who eventually loses touch or becomes estranged from his children. She can then make a new estate plan based on her wishes. Depending on her relationship with her stepchildren, she might decide to leave everything to her own kids. The original intent of his will is lost and his assets are passed onto her children exclusively.
3. The “late in life” spouse.
Everyone should be happy, but the later-in-life spouse is often the root of probate challenges. There is no denying the fact that some young people prey on the loneliness of the elderly in order to access their estate when they die. Sometimes, a late-in-life spouse has no ill intentions but simply can’t fit into the existing family paradigm. Such scenarios often result in will contests. The spouse claims true love. The children claim undue influence.
4. The Opportunistic Caregiver.
With no relative to care for the elderly family member, they often rely on caregivers in their final years. As a result, many choose to sign some or all of their estate over to caregivers instead of estranged family members. While many caregivers have pure intentions, this relationships can provide the opportunity to manipulate the elderly.
5. Hidden Assets
Refusing to deliver assets that someone has inherited is against the law. Regardless, people try to hide money or property during the execution of the deceased’s will. While some probate disputes can be solved without litigation, it is important to discuss your case with an experienced litigator who is well versed in Ohio probate law.
Source: Wealth Management
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