Your estate plan should account for the many stages of life that you experience. Below is a rundown of the estate-planning tools you should have if you’re just beginning your life’s journey, halfway through, or approaching the homestretch.

Ch. 1: Planning for life

• 8 life stages for planning
• The basics of estate planning
• Estate-planning Q&A
• Should you have a will?

(Why You Need to Put Your Living Together Agreement in Writing)

Young, single and carefree

Parents make financial decisions for children by law, until they reach 18, and that legal right is vanquished. Consider the worse, if something happened to you, it is in your best interest for your parents to have access and control to your health care and financial decisions. Access to your medical providers, and more importantly, a say in your health care decisions protects you in the event of the unforeseen.

(A Risky Lifeline for the Elderly Is Costing Some Their Homes)

If you’re over 18 and unmarried, execute four documents to ensure  your loved ones can carry out your wishes:

1. A general durable power of attorney enables you to designate who will control your finances if you become incapacitated, whether it’s your parents or another loved one.
2. A health care proxy allows you to designate who will make medical decisions on your behalf in the same situation.
3. A living will lets you lay out your wishes regarding life-sustaining medical treatment.

Estate planning life stages

1. Young and single.
2. Single, but committed.
3. Engaged.
4. Just married.
5. Parents.
6. Divorced.
7. The middle years.
8. The golden years.

(Sandbagging In M&A Deals: Silence May Not Be Golden)

4. Finally, a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, release enables your designated agent to discuss your medical condition without violating patient privacy laws. Without those documents, loved ones may have to resort to seeking guardianship over you in court at a time when it is the last thing in the world that they want to be doing.

Single, but committed

A will or trust can ensure your life partner inherits your possessions if you’re in a long-term relationship but unmarried. Otherwise, state law deems that they go to your closest relatives.

(The Global Logic of Strategic Alliances)

We’re engaged!

A prenuptial agreement isn’t only for people who have a lot of money. It’s essential for everybody. A lot of people divorce because they’ve never had conversations about money. A prenuptial agreement forces people to engage in this financial conversation.

Just married

Edit your durable power of attorney, health care proxy and HIPAA release if you want to eliminate any question that your spouse should control your financial and medical decisions if you become incapacitated. Think of Terri Schiavo, referring to the woman whose parents and husband battled publicly for seven years over the right to make health care decisions on her behalf after she became incapacitated. She didn’t have a health care proxy.

(Lesbian Couples’ Marriage Rights)

If you do not have a revised durable power of attorney, your spouse also can’t administer property solely in your name or property you hold jointly with your spouse. Also, indicate the person you’d like to make financial and medical decisions on your behalf in the event an accident incapacitates you and your spouse.

If you don’t already have one, this is also the time for a will or trust. In a lot of states, if you die without a will and have a spouse but no children, your spouse will inherit some of what you own, but your parents will also inherit. Avoid the risk of a fight between your spouse and parents over who should inherit, and have a will or trust definitively state who should receive your assets. Also, if you own a home, purchase life insurance that will pay off your mortgage if one spouse dies.

(The Paperwork Mountain at Veterans Affairs)

Finally, change your beneficiary designations in terms of health insurance and investment plans so they pass to your spouse. A lot of people think when they get married, those things change on their own, but that’s not the case. Visit your human resources department and ask which documents include a beneficiary. Health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts sometimes have a beneficiary, as do bank accounts payable on death.

Contact Michigan Estate Planning Lawyer Christopher Berry to ensure your estate plan is secure and in place.

Read more:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/8-life-stages-estate-planning-080013261.html

Attorney Christopher J. Berry is a Metro Detroit estate planning and elder law lawyer who helps families, seniors, veterans and business owners with their important legal needs. Oakland County estate planning lawyer, Christopher Berry is a partner in the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke Berry PLLC. Mr. Berry practices in the areas ofestate planning, business, probate, veterans benefits & Medicaid planning. Follow Christopher on Twitter@chrisberryesq.

While living together contracts are sometimes made to protect each partner in the event of a breakup, more commonly, couples enter into them to communicate their needs and expectations, define their rights, and enhance one or both partners’ peace of mind at either the start of the relationship or when the couple makes a major purchase. By creating a well-crafted agreement, not only do you gain a better understanding of how you really want to own your property, but it also serves as a useful reminder if misunderstandings develop later or one of you perishes without a will. An additional benefit of a living together agreement is that if one partner is supporting the other, or if one partner has given up a career in order to take care of the home or raise children, the agreement will protect the dependent partner by ensuring that issues of support and compensation are stated in writing.

If you are in a long-term and serious partnership you should consider the legal consequences of dealing with money and property. If you plan to mix assets or share expenses, you should put your agreement in writing, especially if a lot of money is involved. If neither of you have any money, with no property and little prospects on the horizon, there is still benefit in deciding how money and or property will be dealt with if it one day arrives. In addition, practical issues of day-to-day living like how expenses will be paid can be established at this time.

A written agreement, though no substitute for trust and communication, is essential and can do wonders to reduce paranoia and confusion and help people deal with one another fairly. While there aren’t any national statistics on the number of unmarried, cohabiting couples enter into living together contracts, some lawyers say such contract are rising as a result of more couples living together and new legal rulings that support the validity of living together agreements.

Legal Rules Governing Living Together Contracts

Predominantly, courts and judges — not legislatures — have made the legal rules governing living together contracts. The leading court case is the well-known Marvin v. Marvin, 557 P .2d 106, decided by the California Supreme Court in 1976. It involved the actor Lee Marvin and the woman he lived with, Michele Triola Marvin; who used his last name even though they were not married. In its Marvin case decision, the court announced what later became the common legal principles governing the right of unmarried couples to make contracts. First, the court ruled that marital property laws do not apply to couples who are not legally married. Next, it recognized that unmarried couples are here to stay, and finally, the court declared four contract principles:

• Unmarried couples may make written contracts.
• Unmarried couples may make oral contracts.
• If a couple hasn’t made a written or oral contract, the court may examine the couple’s actions to decide whether an “implied” contract exists.
• If a judge can’t find an implied contract, she may presume that “the parties intend to deal fairly with each other” and find one partner indebted to the other by invoking well-established legal doctrines of equity and fairness.

In the aftermath of the courts Marvin ruling in California, other states have upheld the application of these principles made by unmarried partners — both straight and gay. Based on the state, however, a court may abide to different legal rules. Nearly every state’s courts and the District of Columbia now enforce written contracts between unmarried partners; with Illinois, Georgia, and Louisiana as exceptions. Additionally, most states also recognize oral contracts; Texas and Minnesota are the only states that have passed laws requiring contracts to be in writing; while New York and New Mexico have been unwilling to recognize implied contracts.

You can avoid a host of legal problems by putting your living together agreement in writing. Contact attorney Marc Wander to do so, today.

Read more:
http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/living-together-book/chapter2-5.html

Marc H. Wander is a partner of the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke, Berry, Carter &Wander, PLLC. Marc has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1992. Marc’s practice is devoted to estate planning and business succession planning.  Marc is a member of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan and is a prior Chairperson of the Oakland County Bar Association Tax Committee. He is a frequent continuing education speaker to insurance agents, financial advisors, CPA’s and financial industry organizations. He has also been heard on WJR Radio. Follow Marc on Twitter @MarcWander

Marriage is a contractual relationship that commits a couple to a well-established set of state laws and rules governing, among other things, the couple’s property rights should one spouse die or in the event the couple split up. On the other hand, unmarried couples, do not automatically agree to any state-imposed contractual agreement at the onset of their relationship.

The couple may have a joint obligation to a landlord or to a mortgage company if they rent or buy a place together, no different than if they were roommates. In and of itself, living together does not create a contractual relationship, nor does it entitle you to a property settlement (for inheritance) should you split up (or should one of you perish).

What’s a Living Together Contact?

Typically, unmarried couples buy property, mixes assets, and invests together without writing down how the property will be shared if they split up. If problems about money and property arise, they usually try to reach an understanding or a compromise. And if they split up, possessions are typically divided and they part way without an obligation to follow the legal rules applicable to marriage and divorce.

But you don’t need me to tell you, that not all relationships end so smoothly. Often relationship battles end up in court. As a result, courts have ruled that unmarried couples generally have the right to create whatever kind of living together contracts they want relating financial and property concerns.

If an unmarried couple chooses to make an agreement together, or in some states if they act as though an agreement exists, that agreement will often be considered an enforceable contract– a “nonmarital agreement” in legal terms, or what we call a living together contract or agreement. An agreement of this nature can help alleviate problems when you commingle money and property; clarify your intentions and expectations regarding property ownership, caring for children, and covering household expenses; and ease the division of property during a breakup.

What to Include in a Living Together Contract

A living together contract can vary from being comprehensive, covering every aspect of your relationship, to specific, covering a single transaction such as a new house purchase. Your contract should state exactly what you each want, and how much sharing (if any) you want to do of property and finances. The following are the most common issues included in a living together contract:

• property and finances, including the property you had before you began the relationship, as well as the property either or both of you accumulate during it
• property inherited or received by gift during the relationship
• property bought during the relationship
• expenses, such as food, utilities, and housing
• what will happen to your property if you split up or if one of you dies, and
• a method for

Contact attorney Marc Wander to ensure your nonmarital agreement protects you and your assets in the event your relationship goes astray.

Read more:
http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/living-together-book/chapter2-5.html

Marc H. Wander is a partner of the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke, Berry, Carter &Wander, PLLC. Marc has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1992. Marc’s practice is devoted to estate planning and business succession planning.  Marc is a member of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan and is a prior Chairperson of the Oakland County Bar Association Tax Committee. He is a frequent continuing education speaker to insurance agents, financial advisors, CPA’s and financial industry organizations. He has also been heard on WJR Radio. Follow Marc on Twitter @MarcWander

Which of the following seem out of place: Dating, romance, sex, fun, love, companionship, excitement, bliss, movies, strolling, sunsets, kisses, tenderness, laughing, presents, snuggling, happiness, well-being, or legal contracts?

It’s may seem strange to pair romance and legal contracts, but the reality is that marriage is itself a contract — and most people face that reality with a fist full of rice and rose petals.

Welcome to the world where prenuptial agreements are not only relevant but as practical as say… health insurance. At the precipice of happiness, infatuation, and love lies an undeniable reality of financial negotiations. Often the very notion of talking about a prenup activates the hot-button issues of a relationship: Who do you love more, me or your kids? Is that all I am to you — a dollar figure? Why are you so interested in my money if you love me, for me?

While prenups are often the precursor to an uncomfortable conversation, fight, or meltdown, writing a prenup is becoming more and more common these days of later marriages and high divorce rates. And although it can accompany a lot of anxiety, it can also offer clarity, and strengthen marriages in the big picture.

Creating a prenup raises volatile issues, but after the smoke clears, a prenup can often bring stability and clarity to a marriage in the long term, because it forces spouses to face the core issues of their relationship. If done with sensitivity and compassion, the process of creating a legal prenup can lay the groundwork for honest communication about money — which is public enemy number one to marriages.

In relationships, money is about power, love, self-worth, security, abandonment, envy, and miles more. For these reasons it’s imperative to discuss money before walking down the aisle, to ensure that it doesn’t throw a relationship off kilter.

When one partner brings considerable more assets to a marriage prenuptial agreements lay a fair and compassionate groundwork for a successful marriage. It is also a factor when children from a past marriage are part of the picture. Communication about core issues build trusts if both parties are marrying for love and commit to honest and full disclosure.

Read more:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mindy-utay/marriage-prenup_b_1922968.html

Marc H. Wander is a partner of the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke, Berry, Carter &Wander, PLLC. Marc has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1992. Marc’s practice is devoted to estate planning and business succession planning.  Marc is a member of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan and is a prior Chairperson of the Oakland County Bar Association Tax Committee. He is a frequent continuing education speaker to insurance agents, financial advisors, CPA’s and financial industry organizations. He has also been heard on WJR Radio. Follow Marc on Twitter @MarcWander.

When it comes to next-of-kin laws and managing digital assets, each service functions differently insofar as notifying designated beneficiaries upon death or serious illness or injury. One example, is AssetLock, where beneficiaries can unlock an account by signing in to confirm the death. After the account is unlocked, information and instructions that were created by the user are delivered to the designated beneficiaries.

Price range of these services vary based on the amount of data stored and the number of beneficiaries designated. Services can cost between $1.50 per month to $30 per year to a $300 one-time fee. Like anything, it is important to find a plan that suites your individual needs. If you your estate is straightforward, a simple inventory stored in a secure place may suffice; but those with a more complex estate or with online businesses might consider an online service.

Shelley Walters-Walker, estate settlement services manager at Northern Trust, suggests referencing the digital assets inventory in estate planning documents such as a will or trust. Ask your attorney about including specific language that authorizes an executor or trustee, or in the case of disability, whomever has the power of attorney, to have access to your digital assets.

As it stands, the law is falling behind the fast-moving digital space, resulting in services that maintain their own sets of rules in terms of digital account access. In time, it is likely that the coverage of estate law will grow to include these assets as part of the estate planning process. But until then, address your online assets with your estate planning lawyer while you create or update your will.

The key to managing digital assets is to avoid being overwhelmed at the thought of it.  With a sea of hours spent online we often overlook how many different applications and systems in which we are creating a digital footprint, Walters-Walker says. Take the necessary precautions to ensure your heirs can access your digital accounts, either to collect on them, close them, or notify others of your passing.

Modern technology exists to simply our lives while we are living, but we are learning that without the necessary steps, it could complicate things significantly once we die.

Mr. Witzke practices in the areas of estate and gift tax planning, financial planning, retirement planning, charitable giving, elder law, and small business planning. He focuses on helping clients grow, protect, and transfer wealth efficiently. Mr. Witzke is a past president and board member of the Financial Planning Association of Michigan, a member of the board of directors for Leadership Oakland, and a member of the planned giving advisory committees of Wayne State University and the Community House in Birmingham. Follow Mr. Witzke on Twitter @gr8estatelawyer.

Terms and agreements for each online service vary regarding just what happens to a digital account after death. Facebook, for example, cannot be shut down completely without official documentation, such as a death certificate. Certain email services deny access to anyone without a password, however, Hotmail and Gmail have recently defined a next-of-kin process, which enables confirmed family members to access the deceased’s contact lists and close the accounts.

There are currently five states that either have or are enacting laws that will protect your digital legacy. Nebraska is the latest state to propose legislation to allow next-of-kin to control digital accounts after a user has perished. According to Adele McAlear, the creator of deathanddigitallegacy.com, the proposed bill is modeled after Oklahoma’s digital property management after death law, which passed in 2010.

Idaho passed a similar law in 2011, while Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Indiana have older legislation covering email and digital files. Sherry Walters-Walker, an estate settlement services manager at Northern Trust hopes for uniformity down the line, and that one day there will be laws that allow executors access to all accounts.

Laws are different for each service and state, contact Michael P. Witzke and discover Michigan’s next-of-kin laws regarding digital assets.

Mr. Witzke practices in the areas of estate and gift tax planning, financial planning, retirement planning, charitable giving, elder law, and small business planning. He focuses on helping clients grow, protect, and transfer wealth efficiently. Mr. Witzke is a past president and board member of the Financial Planning Association of Michigan, a member of the board of directors for Leadership Oakland, and a member of the planned giving advisory committees of Wayne State University and the Community House in Birmingham. Follow Mr. Witzke on Twitter @gr8estatelawyer.

If you have made protecting your assets a priority with the decision of a prenuptial agreement there are several factors to consider. You can be as specific as you desire. Some of the items may not be relevant to your situation. Consider the list and you will be certain to address most of the key issues.

1. Decide how all of your debts will be managed. Including debts incurred before you are married and those thereafter.
2. Ensure you disclose all of your assets, liabilities, sources of income, and any additional future assets, such as gifts or inheritances.
3. In the event that you  divorce or perish, decide who will get your primary or any vacation homes.
4. Determine the fate of any assets or property that you bring to your marriage. Typically, this will be separate property. But a decision needs to be made with your soon-to-be, as to what will happen to any post-marriage appreciation, earnings, or proceeds of that property.
5. Determine what will happen, if you divorce or die, to any assets or property you acquire after you wed.

Read more:

http://oc-divorce.typepad.com/california_divorce_and_fa/2006/02/what_to_cover_i.html

Marc H. Wander is a partner of the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke, Berry, Carter &Wander, PLLC. Marc has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1992. Marc’s practice is devoted to estate planning and business succession planning.  Marc is a member of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan and is a prior Chairperson of the Oakland County Bar Association Tax Committee. He is a frequent continuing education speaker to insurance agents, financial advisors, CPA’s and financial industry organizations. He has also been heard on WJR Radio. Follow Marc on Twitter @MarcWander.