Lamb McErlane attorneys have extensive experience working with people to thoughtfully and effectively create and finalize estate plans, administer trusts and estates.
Lamb McErlane attorneys have extensive (50 years institutionally and over 150 years collectively) experience working with people to thoughtfully and effectively create and finalize estate plans, administer trusts and estates as events require. We strive to know and inform our clients and together plan and carry out the generational transfer of assets including businesses in the most legal and tax effective way to preserve and enhance family values and wealth while minimizing taxation and red tape. You will experience the sophistication and knowledge of a downtown law firm combined with the personal attention of a neighborhood law office.
Estate & Tax Planning
We handle all aspects of estate and tax planning, including providing counsel on the development and implementation of estate planning techniques designed to achieve our clients’ personal objectives and transfer wealth in the most tax-efficient manner. Our attorneys assist clients with non-tax aspects of estate and personal planning, such as asset protection, centralized management of assets, transitioning ownership of a family business, premarital agreements, and effective use of trusts for younger beneficiaries such as children and grandchildren, and beneficiaries who are compromised due to health, finances, legal trouble or addiction issues. As part of their estate plans, our clients may decide to create and fund trusts for wealth preservation such as Dynasty Trusts, Trusts for Grandchildren, GRATS, QPRTS, Charitable Remainder or Lead Trusts and Charitable Foundations. Planning includes end of life medical decision making and the handling of financial affairs in the event of incapacity or disability. Lamb McErlane attorneys are here to help the grantor and trustees to properly administer these entities to make sure the trustees are making proper distributions and upholding their fiduciary duties.
Our attorneys also assist their clients in satisfying their charitable intent. Our attorneys assist clients with optimizing their charitable giving by making outright gifts of appreciated stock, using their RMDs, forming Charitable Remainder Trusts and the formation of charitable foundations.
We serve as advisors offering careful fact finding, state of the art information and practical guidance on complex issues and assisting our clients to provide for their families and future generations while seamlessly working with other advisors.
Administration of Trusts & Estates
At some point events require the implementation and execution of estate plans. We assist our clients in trust & estate administration matters. We work with families and advisors to ensure families and other beneficiaries are treated with dignity and respect, are well informed, the assets distributed as planned, and the estate is managed effectively, timely and efficiently.
Our clients include corporate and individual executors, administrators, trustees and guardians. We provide expertise to make sure they are making proper distributions and upholding their fiduciary duties. We are experienced in bringing our skills to seemingly basic issues as well as more complicated issues arising from complex planning.
From probating wills, assisting in the administration of trusts and collecting valuable assets to providing proper documentation, record keeping and accounting to beneficiaries, to the completion of the process, our knowledgeable attorneys help our clients optimize the value of their trusts and estates and fully complete your goals.
We work closely when necessary with attorneys from our tax, real estate, corporate and litigation practices when required to provide comprehensive, customized guidance through the trust and estate administration.
Litigation, Fiduciary Misconduct, Will Contests and Family Disputes
In some states outside Pennsylvania, the Orphans’ Court is called “Probate Court” or “Surrogate Court”. These Courts decide the validity of Wills, enforce the provisions of valid Wills, oversee the proper distribution of assets, redress fraud and other acts of wrongdoing by Executors and Administrators of Estates and provide for the fair distribution of assets of persons who may die without a valid Will.
Our attorneys have extensive experience in Orphans’ Court litigation on a wide variety of estates disputes. We handle legal proceedings and matters related to will contests, court accountings, surcharge actions, removal actions, fiduciary fee disputes, insolvent estates, tax audits and tax controversies, and disputes surrounding the interpretation of wills and trusts.
Many delicate matters, like family disputes can often be resolved outside of the formal, public, and often costly litigation process. In mediation, a neutral mediator facilitates or guides the parties in resolving their conflict without incurring the expense, delay, and uncertainty of litigation. Lamb McErlane has a team of experienced Mediators.
We have successfully mediated disputes involving wills, trusts, fees and commissions, and other Orphans’ Court matters.
Many of these contentious situations are caused by undue influence.
Undue influence is the issue of whether the decedent, of his or her own free volition, made the distribution provided in his or her estate plan, free from coercion by another individual. Undue influence may occur with a will, a trust, a beneficiary designation, a gift or and transfer on death designation.
Undue influence is an extremely fact specific concept. Undue influence usually takes place behind closed doors and with no witnesses. In general, it occurs when a susceptible or vulnerable person acts in a manner consistent with the direction of another person having a position of trust, control or overly large influence and inconsistent with previous more sensible practices. It is not necessary for lack of capacity to exist for under influence to occur.
Many undue influence cases end up in court involving guardianships, conservatorships, disputed wills, trusts, investment accounts, life insurance and retirement accounts. Undue influence situations may also be present in other contexts such as deeds, powers of attorney, gifts, and contracts.
Some undue influence situations involve criminal cases. In these situations, criminal courts consider especially egregious incidents of undue influence.
Guardianships
A guardian of an estate is responsible for handling the financial affairs of the incapacitated person as a fiduciary, and a guardian of the person is responsible for the day-to-day care of an incapacitated person, such as making arrangements related to living accommodations, meals, personal care and medical decisions.
Our attorneys handle cases for guardians of both the estate and the person of incapacitated individuals, and we represent both individual and corporate guardians for minor children, elderly individuals and disabled individuals. We handle all aspects of guardianships, from securing the guardianship appointment through advising the guardian in his or her fiduciary role.
We provide advice to family members with respect to guardians who have abused their authority. Our attorneys work closely with the guardian or family member to ensure that the incapacitated person is being taken care of compassionately and legally.
In addition, our attorneys handle issues related to voluntary and involuntary guardianships, as well as limited and comprehensive guardianships.
Elder Abuse
Unfortunately, the incidence of elder abuse has significantly increased, both physical and financial. Lamb McErlane Attorneys can assist and offer guidance with these situations.
In summary, Lamb McErlane Attorneys can assist with:
- Representing or pursuing agents acting under powers of attorney
- Will contests, including matters claiming lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress and exercising spousal rights to elect against a will, as well as various other forms of probate litigation.
- Preparing, filing and defending court accountings for fiduciaries.
- Preparing, filing and prosecuting objections to court accountings filed by fiduciaries – including matters alleging breach of fiduciary duty for abuse of discretion, mismanagement, misappropriation and conflicts of interest, as well as various other forms of negligence and/or intentional acts.
- Prosecuting or defending surcharge actions initiated against fiduciaries.
- Prosecuting or defending removal actions initiated against fiduciaries.
- Representing fiduciaries or beneficiaries in fee disputes.
- Representing fiduciaries, beneficiaries or creditors in connection with insolvent estates.
- Representing clients in tax audits at the federal, state and local levels.
- Litigating tax controversies at the federal, state and local levels.
- Using alternative dispute resolution methods, such as arbitration or mediation, when appropriate.
Business Succession Planning
Our seasoned business succession planning practice works with you to provide the best result for you, your family and your business. Each family and business is unique. We strive to know the family dynamics and develop a custom plan and solution. The plan must cover events such as the owner’s death, disability, retirement or planned withdrawal. This requires drafting all appropriate plan documents. Our focus is on maximizing the value of the business, transferring the maximum amount of wealth in the most tax-efficient manner, and addressing all asset protection and family-succession issues and goals. We help determine your post transfer needs and, most importantly, ensure the plan legally protects payments to you and your family. We work with all of your advisors, as a team, to cover and implement all aspects of your plan.
Practicing Attorneys
Related Articles
-
Estate Planning Alert – Proposed New Estate and Gift Tax Legislation
-
Powers of Attorney – One Size Does Not Fit All
-
Now is the Time to Plan: Major Changes to the Federal Estate and Gift Tax Laws Could be in our Future
-
Does The Secure Act Affect Your Estate Plan?
-
Heading Off Family Discord With Estate Planning
FAQs
What Are The Essential Estate Planning Documents?
What Are The Essential Estate Planning Documents?
Estate planning is the systematic approach to organizing your personal and financial affairs to deal with the possibility of mental incapacity and death. Depending on your current family and financial situation, your estate plan will include three or four essential legal estate planning documents. Following is a list of four important legal documents and their purpose:
- Last Will and Testament
Your Last Will and Testament will contain a detailed list of instructions as to how your property should be distributed after you die. If you have minor children, it will contain certain provisions for designating a guardian for your children and a continuing trust for them until they reach certain ages.
- Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney and Living Will
A Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney, sometimes called an Advanced Medical Directive, allows you to designate a healthcare agent, usually a family member, to make medical decisions for you if for any reason you are unable to make them yourself. The Living Will portion allows you to leave a written set of instructions to your physician as to whether or not you want to receive life-sustaining procedures if you have been diagnosed with a terminal condition or are in a persistent vegetative state. It gives guidelines for your family members to follow if you become terminally ill.
- Durable General Power of Attorney
A Durable General Power of Attorney, sometimes called a Financial Power of Attorney, allows you to delegate to the person of your choice the ability to manage assets that are titled in your name, including retirement plans.
- Revocable Trust
Depending on your personal situation and/or the state where you reside, you may require a revocable trust which contains a detailed set of instructions for what happens if you become mentally incapacitated and what happens after your death. This document would be combined with a type of Will called a “pour-over Will”. It helps avoid the necessity for probate in the event of your death.
In addition to these documents, it is essential that you communicate with your family if you have placed such an estate plan in force and advise them where to locate the originals of these documents in the event of your incapacity or death.
For more information contact Stacey Willits McConnell – Chair of Lamb McErlane’s Estate Planning and Trusts Department. 610.701.4431
Estate Planning for your Invisible Assets
Estate Planning for your Invisible Assets
As part of a complete estate plan you must consider your “invisible assets” which include your “digital assets.” These include those assets you access electronically such as checking accounts, retirement accounts and other financial accounts, as well as your user names, passwords and security questions to access these accounts. Digital assets also include your licenses to software, programs you have developed, e-mail accounts, photo storage sites, social networking such as Facebook, and backup storage for your home and business computers.
How do you protect this information and make it available in the event of your death or disability? You should prepare a separate document listing all pertinent information to provide your family and executor with the most expeditious means of protecting these assets and passing them on to your beneficiaries. The list should include all your on-line accounts, user names, passwords, security questions and answers. This list can then be stored with your Will and Financial Power of Attorney along with other valuable papers such as recent income tax returns. It can also be placed on your computer, your removable storage drive or in a “cloud” with remote access. Most importantly, you must communicate to your family member or advisor whom you expect to assume responsibility and where the information is stored, in the event of your death or disability.
Finally, all this information must be kept current to be useful. Each new password, account number or user name should be added to the list or placed in a new updated list and the old one destroyed. In this increasingly digital world, these online and electronic assets will play an increasingly important role in your estate plan.
For more information contact Stacey Willits McConnell, 610-430-8000. smcconnell@lambmerlane.com. Stacey is a partner at Lamb McErlane and Chair of its Trusts and Estates department.
Non-Tax Reasons to Have a Will and Power of Attorney
Non-Tax Reasons to Have a Will and Power of Attorney
There may be plans to abolish the federal estate tax. It is good to remember that there are many reasons for having a Will and Power of Attorney other than the avoidance of taxes:
- Incapacity. This may be the single most important reason to have a power of attorney. By preparing a health care power of attorney, you designate who will make health decisions for you when you cannot. This same person will be able to make end of life decisions for you. In addition, a power of attorney can name someone who will handle your financial affairs when you cannot. Without one, your family may need to go to court to have a guardian appointed for you. That person may not be the individual you would choose and the process is expensive, time consuming and subject to public scrutiny. A power of attorney will prevent a guardianship.
- Avoiding conflict. A properly prepared Will can avoid family disputes. This is particularly important when you wish to distribute your property at death in an unequal fashion.
- Guardians. If you have children under the age of eighteen or an incapacitated child, you must prepare a Will to choose a guardian for these children.
- Managers. Your Will determines who will be in charge following your death. If you don’t write a Will, it will not be your decision as to who will direct the distribution of your property.
Remember that while taxes are an element of an estate plan, the most important reasons to have a well drafted Will and Power of Attorney are non-tax reasons. Don’t delay in getting the proper documents in place.
For further information and assistance contact Stacey McConnell at Lamb McErlane, 610-430-8000 or by email.
Stacey chairs the firm’s Estate Planning and Trusts Department and has been in private practice in the Philadelphia area for more than 20 years representing both individuals and institutions. Her practice focuses on estate planning, administration of trusts and estates, charitable giving, and sophisticated wealth preservation and transfer techniques.