Hiring a lawyer for estate planning is a crucial step in ensuring the seamless transition of your assets and wishes to your loved ones after your passing. Estate planning involves a complex web of legal, financial, and personal considerations that require expert guidance to navigate effectively. While it might be tempting to tackle estate planning…
Category: Estate Planning
The Dingeman & Dancer Blog consists of articles, news, and press releases written and edited by the attorneys and legal professionals at our firm, providing updates on both recent legal developments and established advice and guidance. Choose from the various topics listed in the sidebar menu to narrow in on a particular focus.
There is never a pleasant or convenient time to think about end-of-life scenarios. These types of decisions create stress and strain for families, but by creating a road map ahead of time, you can reduce painful legal proceedings that arise during a time better spent celebrating the life of a loved one. One option for…
The statistics don’t lie: 100% of all humans are going to die someday. You probably own valuable items that you would like to leave to certain people upon your death. Writing your Last Will and Testament is your chance to make sure your heirs inherit the real estate, vehicles, jewelry and family heirlooms that you…
Estate Planning Checklist for Michigan Residents: Plan Your Future When it comes to starting your Michigan Estate Planning, there’s no better time than the present. Everyone, no matter their age or financial status, needs to plan for the future. Obviously, there is no guarantee what tomorrow may hold, but everyone is eventually going to die….
Author: Katie J. Sabo, Esq. Earlier this year, a change to Michigan’s Marketable Record Title Act (“Act”) took effect that requires property owners to take action or risk losing certain property interests. In general, the purpose of the Act is to ensure that a property purchaser obtains “marketable title.” According to the Act, title is marketable…
Many of our clients are family business owners—some large, some smaller. There are many similarities, and many differences among this group of clients. But one thing that all family business owners share is the common need for an established and well thought out exit plan. When working with clients on this issue, we have noticed…
By Katie Sabo It was presumed that Aretha Franklin did not have a will or trust in place when she passed away in August 2018. However, eight months after her death, three handwritten documents were found in her home, each of which appear to be Ms. Franklin’s attempt at a handwritten will. At least one…
The IRS announced that the federal gift and estate tax exemption, which increases annually with inflation, will be $5.6 million per individual in 2018 (or $11.2 million for a married couple), a $110,000 increase from the 2017 exemption level of $5.49 million. The increase also applies automatically to the generation-skipping transfer tax exemption. In addition, the…
What Are Dower Rights? Dating back centuries, dower rights existed to give women (who couldn’t own property when the rights were first employed) the right to one-third of their deceased husband’s real estate. The original intent behind dower rights was to ensure married women had the means to support themselves and any children after the…
Michigan has just taken a big step toward modernizing its trust laws. With the recent passage of the Qualified Dispositions in Trusts Act, Michigan is now one of a small group of states that allows individuals to create what is known as a “domestic asset protection trust” (DAPT), which is a flexible tool for transferring and…