Nina Whitehurst Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
answered on May 12, 2025

You absolutely do not want to re-title your IRA to your revocable trust because that would be a taxable event and also would stop all tax-free growth in the account. What some people do is name their trust as the beneficiary of the IRA. That is something that you might consider with the advice of... View More

No, you should not put your IRA into your revocable trust. This will be a taxable event which will defeat the tax-deferred growth which is a major benefit of having an IRA in the first place. Instead, you can name a trust as a beneficiary of the IRA. The trust that is beneficiary can be a... View More

Nina Whitehurst Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
answered on May 9, 2025

I would caution you against using Freewill.com to create your will anywhere. I was just hired by a person whose parent passed with a will generated by Freewill.com. It has many flaws. I cannot tell whether they are flaws in the software or flaws in user input, but either way I am a little... View More

Based upon the facts you describe, the estate would be divided into four equal shares - one each for the three living siblings and one share for the child/issue of the deceased sibling. You mentioned the deceased sibling had one living child. If the deceased sibling had any other children who are... View More

As a rule, hospitals are obligated to save a life, such as it may be, whenever possible, even in the absence of any health proxy or agreement.

While capacity to enter into any agreement is always an issue, it is probably best for you and yours, on an urgent basis, to have experienced PA... View More

The short answer is for assets that are owned solely by your husband you do NOT inherit all of his assets when he dies. In fact, since the children are not from your marriage, you would most likely inherit only one-half (1/2) of his assets and the other half would go to his children.

if... View More

Anthony M. Avery Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
answered on Feb 23, 2025

You might start by the Next of Kin calling the local LEOs in PA. Apparently proof may be difficult. The surviving Spouse should at least make the complaint. A civil suit for conversion and fraud will be difficult, but discovery might show how the teller accessed the monies without authority.... View More

when drafting the POA you should have the attorney list every name variant above as A/K/A (also known as) and there should be a separate signature line for each A/K/A.

the first name and the most important one is the name on your uncle's driver license since he has to provide a copy of... View More

You seem to be a well-informed person.

You give short shrift to underlying, probably important, facts, however.

For instance, does the aunt's Will pass the 403b interest to you?

Such obligations are usually contractual, between the decedent and the purchaser (aunt?),... View More

While I think it possible that your sibling misunderstood that the tax preparer (CPA?) actually said, in forty-years of practice, I have never heard of a PA law or rule governing or limiting who may draft LLC documents (other than perhaps the PA Bar, which governs who may practice law within PA).... View More

Nina Whitehurst Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
answered on Dec 3, 2024

If you have inherited those policies such that you are now the owners, and if they have cash value, you probably can cash them out for their cash values. But cash values are sometimes far less than the death benefit so that might not be the smartest move from a financial planning point of view,... View More

THe situation you are describing, dying without a Will, is known as Intestacy in Pennsylvania. Since your father did not have a Will, the surviving spouse is generally not entitled to all of the Estate assets. However, the three assets which you described, retirement accounts, stock accounts and... View More

I do not know all the facts in your situation but before you proceed with adding your daughter to the title of this deed, you should consider the potential that doing so could reduce the benefit of stepped-up basis in calculation of capital gain tax if the house is sold in the future. The... View More

Pursuant to PA law, the opening of an Estate must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the probate is pending. Creditors of the deceased or estate have one year from date of first publication to file a claim for payment. If the executrix distributes Estate... View More

although you state that your name is on the account, you can be on account as Power of Attorney or authorized signer (Which both expired when your mother passed away), in which case you may have to open an Estate administration to get control of the funds and open an Estate account (depends on how... View More

To do the things you want (you do not state the amount involved), you can initiate a probate (to pay estate bills, and PA tax on distributions to you is five percent) if there was a Will, or an Administration if there was no Will.

I've represented financial institutions for decades,... View More

Your lawyer is only your representative, and cannot bind you to anything with which you do not agree.

Get a full explanation of what happened, and after that, explain your position. If counsel balks at your position, you have an absolute right to terminate that attorney and engage another... View More

If there was a Will, it probably should be submitted to the probate court (you don't mention a Will, or whether the property was in your mom's name alone, or some other way).

If probated, the personal representative named in it would probably be appointed by the Court.... View More

While you fail to say so. I have to assume, from your question, that your litigation involves the trustee's Power of Attorney. If so, it is highly likely that the Court would approve any reasonable settlement stipulation of the litigants, and that would extend to POA provisions,... View More

James L. Arrasmith Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
answered on Jul 24, 2024

If you've named a guardian in your will for a minor beneficiary, the court typically needs to approve this guardian to ensure they are fit to take on the responsibility. The court's approval process involves verifying the guardian's suitability and may include ongoing oversight to... View More