When a couple decides to divorce, and one spouse is unable to support themselves, spousal support becomes a hot-button issue. Learn how to mitigate conflict and move forward.
Having to complete a QDRO in Washington State as part of your divorce will force you to take a look at your retirement accounts, what’s in them, and their terms. Learn how this impacts your divorce and your estate plan.
A guardian is necessary when a person or minor is considered “incapacitated.” A person is incapacitated if the person is: 1) a minor; 2) an adult who, because of a physical or mental condition, is substantially unable to: a) provide food, clothing, or shelter for himself or herself; b) care for the person’s own physical health; or c) manage the person’s own financial affairs; or 3) must have a conservator appointed for the person to receive funds due the person from a governmental source.
If you’re currently going through a divorce in Washington State, you’re probably digging through piles of papers looking for bills, statements, and other important documents. During that search, most people, however, forget to revisit their estate planning documents. Learn why you should.
A high-net-worth divorce doesn’t necessarily have to become a circus or take years to finalize. With awareness, a couple with extensive assets can emerge from a divorce financially and emotionally sound, ready for a solid future. But it will require a commitment from both parties to ensure that happens. As a Seattle family law attorney, here are a few of my tips to keep tensions at bay.
The federal income tax is complicated as is. Factor in a divorce, tax season can become that much more of a headache. If you’re contemplating divorce or are currently in the divorce process, here are five last minute issues you and your ex-spouse should consider before filing your 2020 return.
Probate is the court-supervised process of gathering your assets, paying off your debts and taxes, and distributing what’s left of your estate to your heirs and beneficiaries. However, that doesn’t have to include all assets. Your retirement and investment assets have the potential to bypass probate if located in the type of accounts that can transfer upon death to a designated beneficiary. When considering whether to include your retirement and investment accounts in your estate plan, here’s what you need to know.
I’ve always been interested in finding ways to take control of my future, especially as I was going through my divorce. So when a friend passed along to me a copy of Marie Kondō’s best-selling book, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing,” I couldn’t wait to begin reading it.
The percentage of children who live in a single-parent household has increased significantly. While estate planning for single parents is similar to estate planning for families with two parents, you should take special consideration and outline specific provisions in your estate plan if you’re a single parent due to death, divorce, or life choice. If you’re a single parent, estate planning should become a high priority.
The only guarantee we have in life is that we’re all going to die someday. If we’re lucky enough, we’ll do this when we’re old, slipping peacefully away in our sleep. But, inevitably, it will happen to each of us regardless of age or health. Unfortunately, too many people pass away without addressing their estate planning and die without leaving a will. Dying without a will, referred to as intestate, is just one of the issues that can come from not addressing your estate planning while you’re alive.