Online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Mr. Miller has many years of experience in designing and implementing a comprehensive variety of Trusts, Wills, and other estate planning documents, as well as settling estates in the most expedient and appropriate method. Further, he counsels and assists clients on becoming eligible for VA benefits and Medi-Cal.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been active in the area of VA Pension and Medi-Cal for well over a decade. He uses various specialized types of Trusts as well as non-trust strategies to gain eligibility for his clients and save the family money.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been settling estates (both simple and complex) for well over 40 years. The starting point is always to create a strategy to settle the estate in the most efficient manner possible with a minimum of taxes. Often times the strategy created allows the family to bypass Probate Court proceedings.
Learn moreOften people come in to ask for an “estate plan.” Sometimes, they have an idea of what a comprehensive estate plan should include. Other times, they simply have a vague notion that a trust of some sort is probably helpful. However, healthcare planning is a large part of the planning process. The VA offers a … Read more
There is a lot of mystery surrounding the costs of probate and trust administration that many of my clients may be overlooking when they create their estate plans, or lack of estate plan. Additionally, the ways to avoid some of these costs are unfathomable to most people. So what are these costs? Probate: Generally, the … Read more
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recently released a series of reports regarding “pension poaching” and other malfeasance by certain individuals aiding veterans in qualifying for veteran pensions and VA Aid and Attendance. The report recounts stories of relatively financially secure veterans transferring assets in order to obtain benefits. However, as the New York Times … Read more
We are quickly approaching what many are calling the “Cliff,” which is a series of tax hikes and spending cuts slated to take effect on January 1, 2013. Although it may seem like a ways away, consider how little has been accomplished this year to date on these issues that are just around the corner. … Read more
Although the first thought you have when you find that a loved one is deceased is probably not to call your attorney, it is among the first steps in an estate or trust administration. Taking care of the remembrances, such as a memorial service or funeral, and some time for mourning is certainly warranted and … Read more
If you have accumulated a fairly large IRA during your career like many boomers, there are a number of important planning steps you should take for its distribution in case your IRA outlives you. You do not generally fund your trust with your IRA or list the trust as a beneficiary, so it is often … Read more
Memorial Day began during the Civil War as Decoration Day. As the bloodiest war in American history to date, African Americans freed from slavery first started the tradition by landscaping and cleaning up the unmarked burial ground at the Charleston Race Track in Charleston, North Carolina. Soon thereafter, following the battle of Gettysburg, the Union … Read more
There are a few things about anticipating an inheritance everyone should know. There are a number of ways to obtain an “inheritance.” The common probate procedures are: intestate transfer, meaning the deceased person did not have a will; and testate transfer, meaning the person did have a will. Additionally, a revocable living trust, joint tenancy, … Read more
Because you have been reading this blog, and then running to review your estate plan immediately, you may have noticed that there are a lot of phrases or segments that seem irrelevant to you or your situation. Some may actually be irrelevant and unnecessary; however, most are the product of “legal fictions” or victorious cases … Read more
While reading about Facebook’s heavily anticipated IPO, I was surprised to find that it brings up the occasion to discuss a number of estate planning issues. For one thing, the estate tax planning issues brought up in large estates may apply to more people beginning next year. For another, the IPO may produce a windfall … Read more
About Living Trusts is hosted by the Law Offices of Merwyn J. Miller, as your online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother is 82 and still lives alone. Over the last year, she has become noticeably more forgetful. She repeats stories, sometimes f...
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother passed away recently, and I have been named the Successor Trustee of her trust. I expected to be sad after losing her, but ...
Dear Mr. Miller: About ten years ago, my husband and I paid an attorney to create a Living Trust. We signed all the documents and put them in a safe p...
