What is Undue Influence in the Context of a Will Contest?
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
1w ago
One way that a party may challenge a will during a will contest is to assert that undue influence was exerted over the decedent by the party who benefits from the disputed will. This raises the question: What is undue influence, and what proof is needed to demonstrate its presence? Appellate courts have explained that in order for influence over a decedent to rise to the level of being considered undue influence, it has to be demonstrated that this influence destroyed the free agency and will of the decedent. This could involve mental, moral, and/or physical coercion. The influence must rise t ..read more
Visit website
2024 Estate Planning Opportunities
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
3w ago
The beginning of a new year is an excellent time to take a new look at your current estate plan or to create one for the very first time. Here are some specific opportunities to consider in 2024: Increased Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Exemptions The estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions increased to $13,610,000 per person in 2024, which is an additional $690,000 of tax exemption per person. For those who have previously made significant gifts, this provides even more gifting opportunities. These opportunities include things such as gifting portions ..read more
Visit website
What Does Incapacitated Mean in Elder Law & Estate Planning? (Part 2)
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
1M ago
In the last post, I shared about how incapacity is defined and what may cause it. Here are ways incapacity relates to specific estate planning documents: Power of Attorney A power of attorney is a legal document that is used to appoint someone you trust to make decisions for you ..read more
Visit website
Estate Planning Pitfall: You Didn’t Retitle Assets to be Included in a Trust
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
2M ago
Using a trust as part of your estate plan can be beneficial in a number of ways, including maximizing tax code provisions to shield assets from gift and estate taxes, protecting assets from creditors or ex-spouses, or helping heirs be more responsible with their inheritance. Revocable living trusts can be a vital part of your estate plan, but in order to help you, they can’t just be drafted and forgotten. A trust needs to be properly funded, including additions that are warranted. If you don’t move certain assets (such as cash, securities, real estate, artwork, and other types of property) int ..read more
Visit website
Is Estate Planning One of Your New Year’s Resolutions? Nine Questions to Get You Started (Part 2)
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
2M ago
In the last post, I shared 9 questions you can ask yourself to begin creating your estate plan. After you have answered these questions, here are next steps you can take to get your estate plan in writing: The Next Step Although the specific documents you use to create your estate plan may vary depending upon your needs and your particular situation, some of the basic documents that most people will want to create are a financial power of attorney, an advance directive, and a will ..read more
Visit website
Is Estate Planning One of Your New Year’s Resolutions? Nine Questions to Get You Started (Part 1)
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
3M ago
People often start the New Year with goals for themselves for the year such as improving their health or writing a book. Making a last will and testament or other estate planning documents is also a common goal at the start of the year. How can you begin this process? To begin, it’s important to understand what estate planning does as well as the ways it helps you and your loved ones. Estate planning is a way to protect you and those closest to you during your lifetime as well as after your death. You can be in control of much of what happens and who will be in charge of certain things if you ..read more
Visit website
Talking to your children about your estate plan
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
3M ago
Talking to your children about your estate plan A key part of the smooth implementation of your estate plan is having a conversation with your children where you are open and transparent about your plan. Having this conversation with them can help prevent future conflicts and can give them more confidence to know what to do when needed. Although it might be much easier said than done, avoiding these difficult conversations or keeping your estate plan a secret can have major repercussions. Here are some important topics to cover with your children when talking about your estate plan ..read more
Visit website
Estate Planning for Your Furry Friends (Part 2)
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
4M ago
In the last post, I began writing about including care for your pet as part of your estate plan. One option for doing this is to establish a pet trust. A pet trust is a type of trust established for the care of one or more animals that outlive their owners. Pet trusts are recognized in all fifty states, especially for the care of animals with longer life expectancies, such as turtles or birds, as well as for animals that are more expensive to care for. Pet trusts will remain in effect for the duration of the pet’s life. If there are multiple pets, the pet trust will remain in effect until the ..read more
Visit website
Estate Planning for Your Furry Friends (Part 1)
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
4M ago
Often, pet owners consider their pets to not just be their most valuable possessions but to be members of their family. Those who own pets want to do all they can to care for their animals, so it is important to consider what may happen if your pet outlives you and to have a plan in place for this possibility. Here are some options for your estate plan to make sure your pet will be well cared for in the event that you pass away: Animals in the Eyes of Law Animals are considered personal property – like a car, jewelry, and other material possessions – under the law. If the person who owns a pet ..read more
Visit website
Estate Planning Pitfall: You Missed the Estate Tax Filing Deadline
Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning
by William S. Wilson
6M ago
It is unlikely that you need to be reminded of April 15th (or the next business day if the due date falls on a weekend or holiday) being the tax filing deadline date as we are often reminded of this date every year. However, if you are the person serving as executor of your loved one’s estate, do you know the filing date of an estate tax return? This due date varies. In general, you must file a federal estate tax return within nine months of the date of death. Filing this return in time is one of your responsibilities as executor of the estate. If you fail to file the return on time, interest ..read more
Visit website

Follow Illinois Estate Planning and Elder Law Blog | Wilson & Wilson – Estate Planning on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR