Beneficiary

12 Jul PRIDE AND PREJUDICE? DID CHARLEY PRIDE’S WILL TREAT HIS SECRET SON UNFAIRLY? SIX STEPS TO REDUCE RISK OF A DISGRUNTLED BENEFICIARY

Posted at 18:49h in Beneficiary, Estate Planning, Inheritance, Lawsuits, Transfer of Death, Trusts, Wills

It was recently reported in the Dallas Morning News that Tyler Pride (“Tyler”)”, who is the biological son of famed country-western singer Charley Pride (“Charley”), has contested the Last Will and Testament of his father. Tyler was not born of Charley’s long-time marriage to Rozene...

17 Jun FIVE TIPS ON DISINHERITING A CHILD OR REDUCING RISK OF SUCCESSFUL CHALLENGE TO YOUR ESTATE PLAN

Posted at 16:15h in Beneficiary

There are various reasons why a parent would disinherit an adult child ranging from failure to communicate for a period of time to verbal disagreements. Under Texas law, there is no legal requirement to name a family member as a beneficiary. The following are suggestions to...

26 May NEW IRS PUBLICATION ERRONEOUSLY REQUIRES INHERITED IRA BENEFICIARIES TO PAY TAXES QUICKER

Posted at 21:59h in Beneficiary

IRS publication 590-B issued recently has surprised almost everyone with its erroneous proposal that designated beneficiaries (“DBs”) will need to take required minimum distributions (“RMDs”) of inherited individual retirement accounts (IRAs) in years one through nine following the year of death of the IRA owner....

20 Apr ARE PAYABLE ON DEATH ACCOUNTS A SUBSTITUTE FOR A WILL OR TRUST? 10 PROBLEMS WITH POD ACCOUNTS

Posted at 01:55h in Beneficiary

Although Wills are often not difficult to probate in Texas, many times the probate process of determining that the Will is valid (so that the Executor can pay the debts of the estate of the deceased and transfer the assets in accordance with the Will)...

11 Aug INSURANCE COMPANY UNINSURED

Posted at 08:16h in Beneficiary, Medicaid Planning, Mortgage, Texas Bar Today Top 10 Blog Posts

A recent decision of a San Antonio appellate court determined that faulty drafting of an annuity contract by the insurance company who issued the annuity resulted in a beneficiary being paid far more than the contracted terms. The annuity contract provided for payments during the joint...

06 May ‘TIL DEATH DO US PART – MARRIAGE CAN BE VOIDED AFTER DEATH

Posted at 16:13h in Beneficiary, Estate Planning, Quality of Life, Wills

Under Texas law, a surviving spouse has a life estate in the homestead of their deceased souse (see our article entitled “Surviving Spouse Homestead Rights – I Never Want to Fall in Love Again” by clicking here). A life estate gives the surviving spouse the right...

14 Jan CHANGE IN RETIREMENT ACCOUNT LAWS AND INCREASED TAXES (SECURE ACT) LEAVES MANY BENEFICIARIES INSECURE

Posted at 19:45h in Beneficiary, Retirement

Although the SECURE Act passage last month (which became effective January 1, 2020) covered 29 new provisions, the one provision likely to cause the most impact is the removal of “stretch” inherited IRA provisions to 10 years unless the beneficiary is an eligible designated beneficiary....

22 Oct SUCCESS STORY OF THE MONTH – THE WORLD ISN’T ALWAYS PERFECT

Posted at 09:00h in Asset Protection, Beneficiary, Lady Bird Deed, Transfer of Death

This story is an illustration of some of the many thoughts that should be considered even if one has a small estate. In this case, the client’s major asset is her home that was deeded to her by her six siblings as it was their...

04 Jun IRS GIVES DETRIMENTAL TAX RULING TO SURVIVING SPOUSE NOT NAMED AS BENEFICIARY

Posted at 14:17h in Beneficiary, Taxes

A recent ruling by the IRS demonstrates the importance of naming a spouse as the beneficiary of an IRA in which the surviving spouse has a community property interest. In this case, the husband (who died) named his child as the sole beneficiary of his...

01 May U.S. SUPREME COURT RULES THAT EX-SPOUSE NOT ENTITLED TO LIFE INSURANCE

Posted at 15:45h in Beneficiary, Retirement, Wills

Although beneficiary designations (such as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy or retirement account) supersede a Will or intestate succession due to the Contracts Clause of the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that if the state has a law that results...