February 25, 2010

Providing For Your Pets After You Die

As a Delaware lawyer who prepares Wills and loves animals, I’m pleased to say that Delaware is one of the states that allows us to create a trust for the care of our pets after we die. So, if you have 1 or more animals and you’re concerned about what will happen to them after you die, you should consider changing your Will to include a “pet trust.” It’s very easy to do this. You keep your original Will, and we prepare a new document called a “Codicil” which contains the changes you want to make.

A “pet trust” allows you to leave money for the benefit of your pet. You name a person to be the trustee. This person will be manage and spend the money you have set aside for your pet. You can include a set of instructions so the trustee will know how you want your pet cared for. For example, you could explain the kind of food that your pet eats, and how often your pet should be fed. You can also include instructions about medication, veterinary care, etc.

Besides naming the trustee, you can also name a “caretaker,” the person who your pet will live with. This is a good idea when the trustee knows how to manage money but doesn’t necessarily want to take care of your pet on a day-to-day basis.

The pet trust would also name a person or an organization to receive any of the funds that are left in the trust when your pet dies.

Posted by Charles Snyderman | | Email This Post

Posted In: Wills

Bookmark and Share

March 24, 2009

Hiring a Delaware Lawyer to Draw Up A Will - Part I

If you’re thinking about contacting a Delaware lawyer to have a Will drawn up, here are some things you need to know. If you’re like most people, what you need is a “simple will.” The cost for a simple will should be reasonable. If you’re quoted a fee that sounds too high, it probably is. Be sure to call around before deciding who you will use.

There are a lot of terms that we talk about when you come in for a Will. Here are some of them.

“Guardian” - the guardian is the person you want to take care of your children if they’re under 18 years old and both you and your spouse are deceased. If you don’t have a Will, the guardian will be picked by the Court. Now think for a minute about which of your relatives might come forward and tell the Court that they want to be the guardian. The Court could pick somebody who you wouldn’t want. The easy way around this is to have a Will and name your first and second choices for the guardian of your children. The Court will always honor your request unless the Court feels that there’s a very good reason why it would be harmful to your children to appoint the person you chose.

“Trustee” - You certainly wouldn’t want your children to receive all of the money they inherit from you and all the life insurance benefits if they’re under the age of 18. But what if they’re 18 or 19 years old? Or 20? Most people think that late teens and early 20's is still too young. The way to deal with this in your Will is to name someone to be the “trustee” who will safeguard and manage the funds until your children reach whatever age you specify. Of course your Will gives the trustee the authority to spend money on such things as education, health, comfortable support and similar things. When your children finally reach the age you specify, the trustee will take the funds out of the trust and give them the money.

Posted by Charles Snyderman | | Email This Post

Posted In: Wills

Bookmark and Share

March 15, 2009

Wills - the Basics - Delaware Attorney

As a Delaware attorney who prepare Wills, I understand why some people put off making a Will. For some, the thought of dying is something they don’t want to deal with. For others, they think they have to organize or inventory everything they own, or that they’ll have to fill out a long and involved questionnaire. The process of creating a Will is usually very simple unless your estate is worth more than $3 million.

This is the first in a series of articles about Wills. Let’s start with the basics and discuss what happens if you don’t have a Will.

Contrary to popular belief, if you die without a Will, everything you own will not go to the State. Instead, the question of who gets what is determined by the intestacy laws passed by our General Assembly. It’s not that our State Government wants to be involved, but if you choose not to specify in a Will how your assets get distributed upon your death, then the law controls who your heirs are.

So who gets everything if you die without a Will? If you're survived by your spouse, here are the rules that apply (it’s actually a little more complicated than this, but these are the basics).

A. If you have no children or parents who are living at the time of your death, your entire estate goes to your spouse.

B. If you have no children but you’re survived by one or both of your parents, then your spouse gets (1) the first $50,000 of your personal assets, (2) one-half of the balance your personal assets, and (3) a life estate in any real estate that you did not own as husband and wife.

C. If you are survived by children who are also the children of your spouse, then your spouse gets (1) the first $50,000 of your personal assets, (2) one-half of the balance your personal assets, and (3) a life estate in any real estate that you did not own as husband and wife.

D. If you are survived by children but one or more of these children are not also your spouse’s children, then your spouse gets (1) one-half of your personal assets, and (2) a life estate in any real estate that you did not own as husband and wife.

The part of your estate that doesn’t go to your spouse under A, B, C, or D, (or your entire state if you’re not survived by a spouse), goes as follows:

1. to your children

2. If you are not survived by children, to your parents

3. If there are no surviving children or parents, to your brothers and sisters and if a brother or sister is deceased, his or her children

4. If there are no surviving children, parents or siblings, to your next of kin.

Posted by Charles Snyderman | | Email This Post

Posted In: Wills

Bookmark and Share

Subscribe

Subscribe to the blogs's ATOM feed Subscribe to the RSS feed

Click on the subscribe button to select from your favorite blog reader options.

Subscribe

Contact Us

Recent Entries

Legal Blogs