Estate Planning

Protect Your Children from Their Inheritance

Protect Your Children from Their Inheritance

Wealthy families often find themselves grappling with how to effectively pass along assets to their children while ensuring they are ready for the responsibility. As we tread towards the largest generational wealth transfer in history, there is a growing need to ensure those inheriting assets are adequately prepared to handle them. There are a variety of risks involved, including:

Legacy Planning is Much More Than Estate Planning

Legacy Planning is Much More Than Estate Planning

Your legacy is bigger than your balance sheet. An effective estate plan, which protects and distributes your assets, is only one part of your larger legacy plan. Taking a Life-Centered approach using your intangible assets as a guide for transferring wealth will provide your heirs with life lessons. 

Try this three-step process to start memorializing more than just your money and maximize your Return on Life (ROL).

Planning Your Legacy to Give Your Family a Lasting ROL

Planning Your Legacy to Give Your Family a Lasting ROL

What is the best way to establish a family legacy?

While some benefactors choose to leave everything to their heirs outright, others prefer placing some guardrails around their assets to make sure that an inheritance is handled responsibly and in accordance with the family's values.

Establishing an entrepreneur's trust in your estate plan is one way to create lasting Return on Life for your family and your community. Let's explore how an entrepreneur's trust works and review some of the key features you should discuss with your loved ones, your attorney, and your financial advisor.

Year-End Charitable Giving

Year-End Charitable Giving

A list of things to consider as you think about year-end charitable donations

With its blinking lights, family traditions, and festive music, December is the most wonderful time of the year. And according to Charity Navigator, the month of December really is wonderful because December sees approximately 30% of all annual charitable giving.

Despite the greatest of intentions, many will inevitably make mistakes in how they give, especially if they wait until the last minute. So, here is a list of things for you to think about as you consider your year-end charitable donations…

What Does Aretha Franklin, Prince, and Abraham Lincoln All Have in Common?

What Does Aretha Franklin, Prince, and Abraham Lincoln All Have in Common?

Another Famous Celebrity Dies Without a Will

When legendary singer Aretha Franklin died of advanced pancreatic cancer at age 76, she did not have a will or trust, according to documents filed in Oakland County Probate Court. And now the $80 million estate of the intensely private Queen of Soul is about to become very public – and possibly very taxing for her heirs.

"The decedent died intestate and after exercising reasonable diligence, I am unaware of any unrevoked testamentary instrument relating to property located in this state as defined under the law,” the form reads.

Aretha’s lawyer of nearly 30 years told the Detroit Free Press that he was constantly asking her to do a trust, but she just never got around to doing it.

"I was after her for a number of years to do a trust," Los Angeles attorney Don Wilson told the Detroit Free Press. "It would have expedited things and kept them out of probate and kept things private."

Wills Are for Everyone