The future may entail a period of time in which our clients are incapacitated and unable to make their own financial decisions. A Power of Attorney for Property addresses this scenario.
Estate Law
When elder law attorneys discuss incapacity, they are referring to an individual’s mental ability, whether a person can make personal decisions and financial decisions.
A Power of Attorney for Property document is useful while an individual is still alive. Unlike a will, the terms of a Power of Attorney for Property document are not effective after you die.
If you discover that your loved one left behind a will which does not appear to reflect their true wishes, you should consult with a qualified estate litigation attorney immediately to discuss initiating a will contest lawsuit.
Illinois law recognizes that any testator (the person who executed the will) must have sufficient mental capacity to complete his or her will (also known as “testamentary capacity”).
Illinois law provides that those individuals who are improperly excluded from a loved one’s will can challenge the validity of the will based on a claim of undue influence.
It is easy to confuse the terms “estate tax” and “inheritance tax”. Most people do not know if these terms are synonyms or if they are actually different types of taxes.
The term “fraudulent transfer” refers to a transfer of property which is made for the purpose of deceiving a creditor and inhibiting the creditor from collecting a debt owed.
The federal estate tax is a tax on property that passes from a deceased person’s estate to their heirs. This tax affects only the wealthiest families in America.
If the individual owed money during his or her life, then that debt remains, and it is the responsibility of the decedent’s estate to pay that debt.