Beneficiary Designations | Begin the Begin

Five New Year’s Resolutions for Your Estate Plan

January 12, 2017

Happy New Year! Very often the New Year brings all sorts of ‘changes’ for individuals, particularly after having spent any time with family members and friends over the holiday season. Here is a quick list of five resolutions to consider for your estate plan.

Is it time to update your plan? If a plan is in place, when was the last time you reviewed it? Is it simply a binder of documents you received several year ago when you finished the estate planning process and you haven’t looked at since? Have circumstances changed that are not captured in the documents? Who are the fiduciaries (i.e., executor, trustee, healthcare power of attorney, financial power of attorney, guardian, etc.) listed? Are the fiduciaries still capable of serving? Does the plan do what you want it to do? There have been a lot of changes to estate tax laws in recent years, is your plan from before 2013? In some cases, does ‘updating’ your plan, actually mean finishing the process? Or does it mean starting the process so that your theoretical plan is memorialized?
Are there beneficiary designations? When was the last time you checked beneficiary designations on life insurance, retirement accounts (i.e., 401(k), IRAs, 403(b), 457, etc.) and annuities? What about any payable on death (POD) or transfer on death (TOD) designations you have on bank accounts or brokerage accounts…do those designations reflect your wishes? For government employees, are beneficiary designations up-to-date on your Federal, state or local benefits?
Families come in all shapes and sizes -Family Fiduciaries. Are you named as a fiduciary in any family member’s or friend’s plan? Have you touched base with that person recently to see how they are doing both health-wise and financially? Do you understand what your role is as the fiduciary? Do you know the family member’s or friend’s goals and objectives? Are you able to still serve, that is, are you distracted by a health event or financial crisis and perhaps you should not take the role? Have you considered options for a care manager if you are caring for an elderly family member or friend? How about looking at assisted living or skilled nursing or home health aides, if the circumstances warrant such considerations?
Are you charitably inclined? Do you have a charitable giving plan for this year? For future years? For at your death? Have you researched your options including direct giving, donor advised funds, private foundations and/or charitable trusts? Is there a planned gift that you would like to consider? Is now the time to investigate annual giving?
Succession planning occurs at many levels. Who will be in charge of any business whether it is a limited liability company, partnership or corporation? Are shareholders’ agreements and operating agreements up-to-date? And beyond a business interest, who will be in charge of your pets? Are there monies set aside for their care? What about digital assets? Have you ensured a smooth transition of online accounts to a successor? What about your tangible personal property? Is there an inventory? Appraisals? Designated recipients?

True, there are a lot of questions and not a lot of answers here, but that is the planning process. One has to begin with the questions to reach the answers. Working with a professional advisor can both provide you with the guidance needed to navigate these questions and ensure that you complete the process. #planyourjourney #lifeplanning #legacyplanning #estateplanning @bgnthebgn

Special Needs Trust Fairness and Medicaid Improvement Act Passes House

September 29, 2016

On September 20, 2016, the Special Needs Trust Fairness and Medicaid Improvement Act (H.R. 670) (the “Act”) passed the House of Representatives. This bill corrects an omission in Section 1917(d)(4)(A) of the Social Security Act created in 1993 when first-party or self-settled special needs trusts were first recognized by Congress. Under 42 U.S.C. 1396p(d)(4)(A), an individual under age 65 who is disabled, may have assets, which are deemed to be theirs (such as assets received from an inheritance or as a result of a personal injury settlement), set aside for their benefit in a trust that is created by a parent, grandparent, legal guardian or the court. Noticeably absent from that list was the disabled individual being permitted to set up the trust themselves. Over time what has been realized is that a disabled individual does not always lack capacity to create a trust, so the Act amends 42 U.S.C. 1396(d)(4)(A) by inserting the words “the individual” into the list of people who can establish this type of trust.

Last year, the Senate passed the Special Needs Trust Fairness Act of 2015 (S. 349), which made the same change. Unfortunately, since these new provisions were part of separate pieces of legislation, the provisions cannot yet be signed into law. Various supporters of the new provisions are now working with the Senate to ensure the provisions ultimately do become law. But what is promising for many is that the provisions of the Act, once signed into law, will do away with the need for court involvement every time a disabled adult wants to create a special needs trust and will instead allow the disabled adult to have some control in his or her public benefits planning. #specialneedstrusts #selfsettledtrusts #estateplanning @bgnthebgn

The Marriage of Divorce and Estate Planning

August 11, 2016

In case you missed the series about the impact of divorce on estate planning, here is a brief recap of some points to consider.

1. The Property Settlement Agreement may require that you maintain life insurance for any minor children. If that is the case, then have you revisited your estate plan recently? What obligations to maintain life insurance do you have? Does the Property Settlement Agreement have certain requirements for the creation of a trust, and if so, what are those requirements? Have the requirements of the Property Settlement Agreement been fulfilled or incorporated through your estate plan? Are there any provisions of the Property Settlement Agreement that will survive death?

2. When was the last time you updated your beneficiary designations on qualified retirement accounts (e.g., 401(k) or IRA accounts), annuities, life insurance or payable on death or transfer of death designations on bank or brokerage accounts?

3. What should happen to your real and personal property? Are there steps you need to take to ensure your real and personal property are distributed to the individuals or entities you want to have benefit?

4. If you are divorcing and have a disabled child, how is that child being provided for upon the incapacity or death of a parent? Is eligibility for public benefits preserved through a properly structured special or supplemental needs trust? Who has authority to make healthcare decisions for the child and in what manner? Has guardianship been determined and the terms in which parents plan to share guardianship specified, if applicable?

5. What happens if an estate plan already exists and you do nothing to update it?

#estateplanning #divorce @bgnthebgn

Maryland Enacts Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act

July 7, 2016

On October 1, 2016, Maryland’s Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act will come into effect, thereby giving a fiduciary (i.e., personal representative, guardian, agent or trustee) or a designated recipient (i.e., a person named using an online tool) the ability to request access to a person’s digital assets in certain circumstances. Digital Assets is defined as “an electronic record in which an individual has a right or interest.” The Act allows an individual to direct whether their digital content is disclosed, to whom and to what extent. This authority can be granted through an online tool provided by the custodian (e.g., Google has Inactive Account Manager or Facebook has Legacy Contact) or through an individual’s will, trust or power of attorney. Access may still be subject to the terms of service agreement and gives the custodian of such information (e.g., Google) some discretion as to the breadth of the disclosure and the ability to charge an administrative fee. If a request is made, the Act requires that a custodian comply no later than 60 days from the receipt of the request, including receipt of all the ancillary documentation associated with the request as detailed under the statute.

So, next steps for you? When creating accounts be sure to look for whether the website requires you to complete an online tool. You may want to opt out of using the online tool so that you can better control your wishes through your estate planning documents. Furthermore, if you reside in Maryland, you should review and update your estate planning documents to ensure that access to digital assets has been addressed in accordance with your wishes. Finally, you should create and store in a secure location a list of all your digital assets, including your credentials, so that your nominated fiduciaries know what assets to access during any period of incapacity and upon death. #estateplanning #estateadministration #digitalassets #MFADAA @bgnthebgn

How Divorce Can Impact Your Estate Plan – Failure to Update an Existing Plan

June 16, 2016

Now that we have addressed property settlement agreements, beneficiary designations, real and personal property and special needs, what happens if an estate plan already exists and you do nothing to update it? Presumably, the existing plan was prepared during the marriage and has the former spouse in fiduciary positions and named as a beneficiary. The entire plan should be updated to reflect new trustees, personal representatives/executors, financial powers of attorney and healthcare agents. But often, recently divorced individuals simply do not have the inclination to handle one more legal matter (particularly if the divorce was not amicable).

Virginia law has a savings clause that may apply. Under Virginia law, if a person creates a last will and testament while married, divorces and subsequently dies without updating his or her last will and testament, the divorce “revokes any disposition or appointment of property made by the will to the former spouse.” Va. Code §64.2-412. In addition, any appointment of the former spouse as a fiduciary under the will, including as executor, trustee, conservator or guardian, is revoked. However, this law does not change any financial power of attorney or healthcare power of attorney under which the former spouse may be named. Furthermore, the law does address provisions contained in a trust agreement. Therefore, a former spouse may have authority to act or be treated as a beneficiary unless changes are made or other state statutes apply.

Moreover, if there is an irrevocable trust or “spousal lifetime access trust” (SLAT) that benefits a spouse, then there may continue to be income tax consequences to the creator of that irrevocable trust even though the parties divorce. The regulatory and legislative history surrounding the applicable tax code sections (Sections 71, 672, 677 and 682) is not as clear as it should be, in certain circumstances, as to whether a grantor (or creator of the trust) will still be held liable for the income tax associated with the irrevocable trust that otherwise benefits an ex-spouse. Therefore, the trust agreement and relevant tax law need to be reviewed and a determination made regarding any ongoing tax liability.

Overall, taking into account all of the considerations described throughout this series, it is clear that after a divorce (and perhaps even during a divorce), it is imperative that you begin the process of updating your estate plan to avoid the potential of having a former spouse in a position of authority during incapacity or upon death and to avoid a former spouse unintentionally benefiting from your demise. #beginthebegin #divorce #estateplanning #updateyourestateplan @bgnthebgn

How Divorce Can Impact Your Estate Plan – Real Estate and Personal Property

June 2, 2016

After addressing property settlement agreements and beneficiary designations, this next article in the series on divorce and estate planning discusses real estate and personal property.

Married couples tend to own real estate together, whether as a primary residence, a vacation home or an investment property, and may have purchased a variety of personal property together, such as artwork, furnishings and the like. Upon divorce, Virginia law dictates that all rights in real and personal property, “including the right of survivorship in real or personal property title to which is vested in the parties as joint tenants or as tenants by the entirety, with survivorship as at common law, shall be extinguished. . .” Va. Code §20-111. Thus, by operation of law, the ownership of real and personal property is converted to ownership as tenants in common.

Now depending on the property settlement agreement, each party will generally own fifty percent of the real and/or personal property. In order to ensure that the real and/or personal property is used for an individual’s benefit during incapacity and distributed to his or her beneficiaries upon death, a person should consider transferring such real and personal property to a revocable living trust (the benefits of which I have discussed in earlier posts).

Alternatively, for the real property, Virginia has the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act, which allows a person to essentially designate a beneficiary for his or her real property by way of a transfer on death deed. This deed is revocable, provided certain formalities under the statutes are followed, but allows for you to be on record to the public as to who or what entity should receive the real property. Although it is a revocable designation, it is not that straightforward to change, particularly if you decide to do so multiple times, which may create issues if death occurs in the midst of a change. Thus, a transfer on death deed should only be considered in certain circumstances depending on your overall estate plan.

With all that said, keep in mind that if nothing is done to handle the real and personal property, then both will pass by operation of law (and perhaps to unintended beneficiaries – think #Prince). More control exists if real and personal property are passed through an effective estate plan, (e.g., by way of a revocable living trust) versus letting state statute decide. So, if you are recently divorced or in the process of divorcing, ask yourself what should happen to your real and personal property and be sure to take action so the real and personal property does pass in accordance with your wishes. #divorce #estateplanning #transferondeath #revocablelivingtrust

How Divorce Can Impact Your Estate Plan – Beneficiary Designations

May 26, 2016

The last article regarding the impact of divorce on one’s estate plan talked about property settlement agreements and the obligations that must be incorporated into the estate plan. This next article will discuss how most individuals going through a divorce have qualified retirement accounts, life insurance policies and cash, savings or brokerage accounts that may have a beneficiary designation or payable on death or transfer on death designation that needs to be updated. Very often the named beneficiary is the former spouse. What happens if the beneficiary designation is not updated and a person dies having named his or her former spouse on these accounts?

Under Virginia law, upon the entry of a decree of divorce, “any revocable beneficiary designation. . .that provides for the payment of any death benefit to the other party is revoked. A death benefit prevented from passing to a former spouse by this section shall be as if the former spouse had predeceased the decedent.” Va. Code §20-111.1(A). The statute includes payments from life insurance, annuities, retirement accounts, compensation agreements or other contracts where assets are paid at death. This law is favorable for those that forget to update their beneficiary designations, however, there are exceptions. The law does not apply (a) if the property settlement agreement and/or divorce decree provides for the former spouse to be named; or (b) to any trust or any death benefit payable to a trust. Va. Code §20-111.1(C). Furthermore, the Virginia law may be preempted by Federal law.

If the Virginia law is preempted by a Federal law, the Virginia law states that in the event the death benefit is paid to a former spouse for no consideration and the former spouse was not otherwise entitled to such payment, the former spouse will be “personally liable for the amount of the payment to the person who would have been entitled to it were this section not preempted.” Va. Code §20-111.1(D). Thus, if a person remarries, but fails to name their new spouse as a beneficiary on their Federal retirement account and continues to name their former spouse, arguably, the new spouse could seek reimbursement from the former spouse.

However, in the case of Hillman vs. Maretta, a widow sued the decedent’s former spouse for the amount the former spouse received under the decedent’s federal employees’ group life insurance (“FEGLI”). The parties acknowledged that Va. Code §20-111.1(A) was preempted by Federal law. However, the widow argued that Va. Code §20-111.1(D) regarding personal liability was not preempted. After careful analysis and consideration, the Circuit Court of Fairfax County held in favor of the widow. On appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court, the Court ruled that the trial court erred and that Federal law trumps state law. Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed with the Virginia Supreme Court.

Thus, in 2012, Virginia’s statute was modified to require every divorce decree to include a notice warning the parties that beneficiary designations may not be automatically revoked by operation of law as a result of the divorce. Therefore, the parties are responsible for updating their beneficiary designations to avoid any unintended consequences. As a result of the Hillman case, updating beneficiary designations, particularly beneficiary designations that are governed by Federal law, is critical.

So ask yourself – when was the last time you updated your beneficiary designations? #divorce #estateplanning #beneficiarydesignation