Gary Coleman Estate Mess

August 6, 2010

Filed under: Estate Planning — Christopher J. Berry @ 9:28 pm

As a Michigan estate planning lawyer, I help clients prepare their estates for a smooth process upon their passing. This pales in comparison to the Gary Coleman estate, where there were tons of issues.

Gary Coleman’s estate turned out to be quite a mess. Gary Coleman had a will that hadn’t been updated that left everything to an ex-girlfriend, a health care directive that had not been updated leaving control of the decision on whether he lived or died to an ex-wife who he was in a bitter fight with, and enough other loose ends to keep attorneys at work for years.

However, Gary Coleman did have some documents in place, which is better than many people according to a Martindale-Hubbell legal review in 2007, that stated that 55% of Americans do not even have a will, let alone a trust based estate plan that would avoid probate.

You can read more in the www.buffalonews.com.

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The Michigan Family Vacation Home

August 5, 2010

Filed under: Estate Planning — Christopher J. Berry @ 9:29 pm

Many of our clients are like the typical Michigander, that is someone in their family has a cottage or vacation home up north. Many people a hefty chunk of their summer enjoying the family cottages up north. However, when it comes to estate planning, the family cottage can become quite a troubling issue.

Who will get use of the cottage when mom or dad passes? Can all the children access the cottage? What if the cottage is sold? What if one of the children gets divorced, will the cottage have to be liquidated?

Proper planning for the family cottage often entails changing the legal ownership of the Michigan family cottage to another type of legal entity, usually a Michigan Family Vacation Property LLC along with a properly crafted operating agreement.

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	How To Correct a Death Certificate in Michigan August 19, 2010 Filed under: Uncategorized — Christopher J. Berry @ 9:25 pm As Michigan estate planning attorneys, a question that occasionally we hear is “how do I correct a death certificate?” In Michigan, the process is not too difficult. In fact, the paperwork can be obtained online at http://www.michigan.gov/documents/deathcorrpublic_6733_7.pdf. Once the form is printed out and completed, the application must be sent to Vital Records Changes, PO Box 30721, Lansing, Michigan 48909, along with the fee of $40. Additional certified copies are $12 per copy. If you have questions, in addition to contact us, you may contact the Michigan Vital Records Changes Unit at (517)-335-8660. One thing to note, however, the process can take longer than expected and up to 3-4 months to get the updated death certificate. Share this: LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Comments (0) Estate Planning for Michigan Families with Special Needs Children Filed under: Estate Planning,Special Needs Planning,Special Needs Trusts — Christopher J. Berry @ 9:23 pm It was a pleasure to present with Nicole Beurkens of Horizons on the topic of Legal Issues Facing Families with Special Needs Children. Nicole is in the Grand Rapids area, while I am near Detroit, in the South-East Michigan area, more specifically, Bloomfield Hills. We had a phone conference, that Nicole hosts regularly for her clients. The reach of the call included Michigan, as well as outside the state, as we discussed topics relevant to estate planning and special needs planning, including the use of special needs trusts. If you haven’t visited the Horizon’s website you should at http://www.horizonsdrc.com/. Share this: LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Comments (0) The Estates of Karl Marx and Charles Darwin August 11, 2010 Filed under: Estate Planning — Christopher J. Berry @ 9:27 pm Apparently Karl Marx died a poor man and Charles Darwin died a rich man, according to a CNN article and ancestery website Ancestry.co.uk. This information was held in the England and Wales National Probate Calender, 1861-1941. Karl Marx, the anti-capitalist, who died in 1883, left roughly $395 in his estate. This translates to $31,600 in today’s dollars. Compare this to Charles Darwin, who had an estate of roughly $232,000 or $20.5 million in todays dollars, when he passed away in 1882. Other notable estates include John Cadbury, Charles, Dickens, Sherlock Holmes author Arthur Conan Doyle, and Lewis Carroll. You can read more by visiting the CNN article at Online Database Reveals Estates of Marx, Darwin. Share this: LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Comments (0)						(248) 481-4000 Free Initial Consultation Name* Email* Phone Comments Name This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Subscribe by email: For Email Newsletters you can trust Gift Taxes: What Your CPA Doesn’t Know Brooklyn Court Dumps Marriage Contract In Unprecedented Action Basic Estate Planning 101: What You Need to Know Michigan reveals goals on autism services Estate Planning For Your Digital Assets March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 July 2012 May 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 August 2010 July 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 Asset Protection Business Planning Cohabitation Agreement Do It Yourself Estate Planning Gone Wrong Elder Law Estate Administration Estate Planning Estate Recovery Estate Taxes and Lifetime Gifts Events Federal Estate Tax Financial Planning Health Care Directives Holistic Estate Planning Identity theft IRA Trust LegalZoom Life Insurance Life Insurance Trust Living Trust Living Will Long Term Care Medicaid Planning Michigan Veterans Benefits Nonmarital Agreement Planning for Parents with Minor Children Planning for Pets with Pet Trusts Power of Attorney Prenuptial Agreements Probate Probate Litigation Quicken Willmaker Retirement Accounts Special Needs Planning Special Needs Trusts Stretch IRA Suze Orman Uncategorized Veterans Benefits Will Michigan Elder Law Attorneys & Lawyers \| Michigan Elder Law Center Michigan Estate Planning Lawyers & Attorneys Tulsa Estate Planning Blog