Spouses With a Joint Trust: What Happens If You Die Days Apart?
You and your spouse built one life, one family, and often one estate plan. But if you die in the same accident or only days apart, the order of death can change who inherits, which documents control, and whether assets pass through two estates instead of one. Here is what a survivorship clause does and why your plan should answer the question before your family ever has to.
Should You Leave an Inheritance in Trust for Adult Children?
Your child is a doctor, lawyer, founder, or other successful professional. Leaving their inheritance outright often feels like the respectful choice, but their success brings risks that direct ownership does not protect against. Here’s when an inheritance trust for adult children can protect what you built without treating a capable adult like a child.
You Have Life Insurance. Here’s What Your Family Actually Needs.
You bought life insurance because you wanted the people you love to be protected. But the policy you chose years ago may no longer match the family, finances, or estate plan you have today. Here’s what a life insurance beneficiary review can reveal before your family needs the money.
You Made a Will. Here’s What It Can’t Do.
You did it. You made a will. That matters more than you know. But here’s what most families don’t realize until it’s too late: making a will is the first step in protecting your family, not the last. Here’s the checklist that comes next.
The Cosby Show Made Him Famous. His Estate Plan Failed His Family. Here’s What I Would Have Done.
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, best known as Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, died in 2025. One year later, his widow alleges $1.2 million in unfulfilled premarital obligations: a life insurance policy never purchased, a Roth IRA never funded, and anniversary payments never made. A nine-year-old daughter is at the center of the dispute. Here’s what more thorough follow-through on the planning could have helped prevent.
Make-A-Will Month Is Here. But a Will Isn’t a Plan.
August is Make-A-Will Month, and if you’ve been meaning to get your affairs in order, this is your reminder. But before you assume that getting a will means your family is protected, there’s something most people don’t know about what a will actually does and doesn’t do.