Healthcare Power of Attorney Formalities

There are a few technical requirements with which you must comply before a healthcare power of attorney will be considered legally valid and binding.

Beneficiaries -- Issues in Choosing Professional Advisers

A beneficiary should ask himself whether he wants to (or can) tend to the estate himself or whether he would rather delegate the responsibility to someone else. The larger the inheritance, the more likely a beneficiary will need professional advice. A six-figure inheritance or greater will probably change many things in a beneficiary's life and he will need good advice for these changes.

Codicils

In Latin, the word "codicil" means "little will. A codicil is a formal document that amends the provisions of a will. The amendments may change, modify, or supplement the provisions of a will.

Limited Inheritance in Unusual Circumstances

State statutes of descent and distribution are usually supplemented by other statutes or court rulings that limit or prohibit inheritance in unusual circumstances. This article discusses some of those unusual circumstances.

Inheritance Without Planning Means No Person Is In Control

When a person dies intestate (without making and leaving a will), each state provides a default plan (usually known as the statute of descent and distribution) under which his or her net estate is disposed. Under the default plan, no person is put in control of the disposition. The disposition must go according to the defaul plan. This article discusses the disadvantages of descent and distribution related to that inability to have a person put in control of the disposition.