If you are divorced, or you advise clients who are divorced, this is important. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) takes precedence over the Pennsylvania statute that removes divorced spouses as beneficiaries. What this means is that unless your employer’s plan contains a provision to the
Ex-spouse Does Not Mean Ex-beneficiary
If you are divorced, or you advise clients who are divorced, this is important. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) takes precedence over the Pennsylvania statute that removes divorced spouses as beneficiaries. What this means is that unless your employer’s plan contains a provision to
No More Patents on Tax Strategies
A patent is an exclusive right granted by the government to an inventor for a limited period of time in exchange for public disclosure of the invention. A patent application must include one or more claims defining the invention which must be novel and non-obvious. The exclusive right that is given with the granting of a patent
Wills and contracts: what happens when the two meet?
We often see situations where one spouse dies and the surviving spouse changes his or her will to benefit different persons than were contemplated by the first spouse. A prime example would be a couple where the man had four children by his first marriage and five with his second wife. Husband and wife make
Form 8939 Filing Deadline Extended
Hat Tip to Dean Mead: Form 8939 Filing Deadline Extended
There’s nothing like prolonging the agony.
99% of Lawyers Give the Rest of Us A Bad Name
The estate of deceased multimillionaire Frank Blumeyer of Naples, Florida, is embroiled in controversy.
The 92-year old Blumeyer’s $10 million estate is being fought over by his children and, his neighbor, a disbarred lawyer. Aisling Swift, writing for Naplesnew.com says: "The tangled web of litigation and love is like a made-for-TV movie. There’s a suspended
Duane Morris Sued for Malpractice Because of Madoff Investments
In a suit filed against Philadelphia law fimr Duane Morris LLP and two of their estate attorneys, Stanley M. Joffee, Esq. amd Stanley A. Barg, Esq., plaintiffs claim they suffered "substantial losses" after the lawyers allegedly ignored their requests for conservative investment strategies and their money was invested in a Madoff feeder fund instead. Plaintiffs are real estate
Zsa Zsa Gabor is Still With Us – But Already a Fight Over her Estate?
See this excellent blog post at Trust Advisor Blog:
Zsa Zsa’s Heirs from Past Marriages Line Up at Deathbed, Get Ready for Probate Court
Non-Profits Lose Tax-Exempt Status for Failing to File Returns
On June 8, 2011 the Internal Revenue Service announced the names of 275,000 non-profit organizations that lost their tax-exempt status because they did not file legally required forms for three consecutive years. That means about 14% of existing non-profits lost their tax-exempt status. Most of the organizations that lost exempt status are charities but some
Going Once, Going Twice
The Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service, and Congress have all identified "offshore tax evasion" as a primary enforcement target. The success of the enforcement effort so far has energized government efforts in these cases.
If you are an American taxpayer with an offshore account that you thought was secret, you have very little