Internal Revenue Code § 529 created a state-sponsored college savings plan which has very generous tax benefits. It is an excellent alternative to consider when saving for the education of your children or grandchildren. A 529 Plan is an investment account owned by one individual. It must have a single beneficiary. So long as the benefits are paid out for tuition, fees, room and... Read More
The most flexible solution to the problem of handling the children’s funds is to create a trust under your will. If the children were orphaned, the entire estate could be divided equally among the children and then held in a separate trust for each. This would allow each child to receive his or her share upon reaching whatever age you designate (often 21 or... Read More
If you are young enough to have children (Minor children) who have not left home, the most important consideration in making a will is likely your concern for the children. This concern should apply both to how children are to be raised if they are orphaned, and how the combined property you may leave should be protected, invested and... Read More
PLANNING FOR THE FAMILY AND THE FUTURE Regardless of what financial circumstances you may find yourself in during life, some thought must be given to how things would change when you die. The loss of a loved one is always emotionally traumatic. It can also create a financial disaster. Estate planning is an activity meant to limit the financial... Read More
The principal implementing statutes under which the Surrogate’s Court functions are the N.Y. Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act (SCPA) and the N.Y. Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL). Both the SCPA and EPTL took effect on September 1, 1967. The SCPA, which superseded the N.Y. Surrogate’s Court Act (SCA), governs the practice and procedure in all proceedings commenced in the Surrogate’s Court. Although the EPTL... Read More
The Surrogate’s Court is unusual among New York courts in that it is a court of record, with all the attendant powers; it has a constitutionally and statutorily defined range of jurisdiction over a wide range of matters, it is subject to no monetary limits, and its process may operate worldwide. It is also a court of equity. As such, it may order... Read More