» Estate Planning
What is the Difference Between a Tangible and Intangible Asset?
July 11, 2022
A decedent will likely pass on both tangible and intangible property through their last will and testament. Questions often arise regarding the difference between tangible and intangible assets and how something that lacks a physical existence is cla…
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Categories: Estate Planning
New Laws Allow Electronic Signing of Estate Planning, Real Property Documents Through Dec. 31, 2020
December 9, 2020
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently signed House Bills 6294-6297 into law, allowing documents to be signed, witnessed, and notarized electronically until Dec. 31, 2020. The bills amend the Estates and Protected Individuals Code, the Uniform Electronic Tra…
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The Reasons People Fail to Create an Estate Plan
January 9, 2020
Few people wish to think about their mortality, let alone take time to plan for those they leave behind. A recent Care.com survey reveals why people fail to create an estate plan.
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Don't Forget Digital Assets When Estate Planning
October 24, 2019
If you have a smartphone, tablet, or computer you most likely have a digital asset. It's important to protect digital assets just as you would any other valuable.
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Some important considerations for parents revisiting their estate plan
July 27, 2016
When it comes to estate planning, it’s important for people — particularly parents — to understand that it’s more than just a one-time event, but rather a lifelong endeavor. That’s because whether they realize it or not,…
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What are power of attorney and the health care directive?
February 8, 2016
Power of attorney and the health care directive are two aspects of your will and estate plan that dictate who will make financial decisions on your behalf, and how you should be medically treated in case you are incapacitated (respectively). As you c…
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Your will is not written in stone - for the most part
February 2, 2016
We are finishing up our discussion of the various ways a testator can change his or her will. There are codicils and separate writings, for example, that can amend or supplement an existing will. And, over the past couple of decades, technology has m…
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An estate plan is more than the sum of its parts, whatever they are
December 29, 2015
We talk about estate plans all the time, but it occurs to us that we have not really reviewed the individual components of an estate plan. This is definitely an a la carte menu: Personal circumstances dictate what any one person needs at any given ti…
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What is a life settlement? Does Michigan regulate them?
December 2, 2015
We are talking about life insurance and its place in an estate plan. As we explained in our Nov. 16 post, life insurance can be part of a retirement plan, too. If you own your own policy, and the policy is for permanent life insurance, you may be abl…
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'Life insurance, meet my retirement plan and my estate plan'
November 16, 2015
A life insurance policy can be an important part of an estate plan for a few reasons. First, the payout is not counted as taxable income. Also, the payout processes more quickly than a lump sum bequest. While your personal representative goes through…
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