When we last heard from Jenna and Mark, they were clinging to one another, attempting to wait out Hurricane Astrid in a community center in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. The trip was Mark’s attempt to reignite the romance in their lives, after the birth of their third child, Mikey, five months prior. At age 30, they had thriving careers—Jenna…
When we last met Jenna and Mark Livingston, they were hunkered down in St. Thomas, U.S Virgin Islands, waiting for Hurricane Astrid to pass. As they huddled in the town assembly hall, Jenna, an attorney, and Mark, a pediatrician, bemoaned their failure to adequately plan for the care of their children in the event of their death. Both age 30,…
Perhaps the most important decision you will ever make is who will serve as guardian(s) for your children. In California, a child under the age of 18 is not legally qualified to care for her or himself if both parents die. Any child under the age of 18 must have a legally appointed guardian. Typically, guardians of minor children are…
After years of marital discord, John and Angie Wakefield finally decided to call it quits. John filed for divorce in California on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, asking for a fair and equitable division of community property, retention of all separate property, and shared custody of their two children. In her response, Angie not only requested child support, she sought…
Robert Manning thought long and hard about the appointment of the executor of his will. He could appoint his wife, but there was a chance he might outlive her. And his wife tended to get a bit scattered when under pressure. Robert wasn’t sure if she could withstand the constant harping of relatives he was sure would show up expecting a handout.
When Miranda Jones married Scott Ludlum, with their six children in total, they anticipated a Brady Bunch existence. For many years, they co-existed peacefully, then Scott became seriously ill. It seems upon marriage to Miranda, Scott had failed to update his Living Will, Financial and Healthcare Powers of Attorney, and HIPAA Release. In all of those documents, Scott had appointed his former wife, Lenore, to make healthcare and financial decisions should Scott be rendered incapacitated.
Sally Janes could not wait to retire.
She and her husband, Ben, had been saving for retirement since their children had completed their college degrees. They decided the “magic number” was age 65, when they would qualify for 90 percent of their Social Security benefits. Combined with their respective retirement plans and savings account, the money from Social Security would permit them to live in comfort for the rest of their lives.
Chuck Meiers was nestled in his bed when the call came. “Is this Charles Meiers? The owner of the building at Morgan and Main, CM Towers? I believe your business, CM Law, is the sole tenant there?” “Yes?” “Sir, this is the San Valdeos Fire Department. We responded to a fire alarm at your building. There is a lot of black smoke coming out of your roof. It appears your building is on fire.”
Barry Donovan died a happy man. Not only was he joining his late wife, Sarah, in the great beyond, he was also confident his assets would be fairly distributed in accordance with his will. Several days after he had been laid to rest, Barry’s five children—James, John, Sarah, Sally, and Iris—and his surviving siblings—Joseph, Sally, and Sarah—gathered for the reading…
Lost or Undiscovered Assets Pose Problems for the Administration of an Estate
When Jonathan Morgan was named the executor of his father’s estate, he thought he had an easy task ahead of him. After all, his father, Harold, had assured him that he had carefully listed every asset he owned on a sheet of notebook paper attached to his will.