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Beneficiary Designation Forms: A Good Estate Plan Is Not Complete Without A Review Of These As Well

Now that you are finally getting around to having your Will prepared or updated, or even considering adding a Revocable Trust to your planning documents, it is also important to plan for those assets that are subject to a document commonly referred to as a beneficiary designation form.  Most commonly, my clients inquire: Doesn’t my Will take care of these assets as well?  The answer is “no.”  Although in some cases you may desire that those assets be directed to your estate so that they pass through your Will, or even a trust you have created, you must do something to make that happen.  That something is done through your beneficiary designation forms.  This is of the utmost importance because the assets that pass by beneficiary designation may very well comprise a large percentage of your total assets. Continue reading “Beneficiary Designation Forms: A Good Estate Plan Is Not Complete Without A Review Of These As Well”

Another Reason to Move South – Creditor Protection of Retirement Plan Benefits for Floridians

In the fall of 2014, my colleague Betsy wrote an informative blog regarding a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that held that under federal law, an IRA that is inherited by an individual (i.e. the beneficiary) is not protected in bankruptcy. Continue reading “Another Reason to Move South – Creditor Protection of Retirement Plan Benefits for Floridians”

It’s Time To Reconsider IRA Beneficiaries

Have you named your children as beneficiaries of your IRA? Perhaps it is time to re-think that decision.

A recent United States Supreme Court ruling raises concerns about asset protection and the designation of IRA beneficiaries. In June the high court unanimously ruled that, under federal law, an IRA that is owned by a beneficiary is not protected in bankruptcy. The ruling does not affect the bankruptcy protection from creditor claims of an individual’s IRA. Rather, it exempts from bankruptcy protection any IRA that has been inherited. This means that IRAs that are transferred by an IRA beneficiary after the IRA owner’s death to an IRA in the beneficiary’s name could be lost to creditors’ claims if the beneficiary files for bankruptcy.

Continue reading “It’s Time To Reconsider IRA Beneficiaries”