Decanting is the process of transferring property from one trust to another. Specifically, the term applies when a trustee transfers property from one irrevocable trust to a new trust that has terms different than the original.

Question 2: Why is decanting useful?

The terms of an irrevocable trust are typically not subject to change. With decanting, a trustee has the ability to effectively change the terms even though he or she is doing so by transferring the property to a new trust that has new terms. In states that allow for decanting, this is one method a trustee can use to more effectively manage the trust without having to go before court to seek judicial permission to take certain actions. In states that don’t have decanting provisions, the trustee will probably have to get court permission to perform the decanting.

Question 3: When is decanting used?

There are wide range of situations in which a trustee can use decanting. Some common situations include: taking advantage of new laws, improve outdated trust provisions, address the new needs of the beneficiaries, or transfer the jurisdiction of the trust to a new state that has more favorable laws and tax provisions. In general, the trustee can only use decanting for the benefit of the trust beneficiaries.

Issue 1: Your Will.

Each state will recognize the validity of the Will created in a different state as long as your Will meets the legal requirements of the state where you made it. However, because the laws and court cases surrounding wills differ between states, it’s a good idea to have a lawyer familiar with the laws of your new state review your will. There may be some minor changes you will want to make to prevent any potential problems down the road, but it’s very unlikely that you will need to rewrite your Will entirely.

Issue 2: Your medical directives.

While your Will is probably safe, your medical directives are another issue. When you move to a new state you will probably want to create new advance directives. This is primarily because your directives will first be used by health care providers. It’s important that your health care providers are able to recognize a valid medical directive, and making a new directive that complies with the laws of the state in which the health care providers are located is probably a good idea.

Answer: No. While the law grants married couples the right to automatically inherit from one another, there is no such automatic right for unmarried couples regardless of how long you’ve been living together. For cohabiting couples it’s important to create an estate plan that will provide for your partner in the event you die, if that is what you want.

Question 2: If I get sick, does my girlfriend/boyfriend have the right to tell my doctors what I want?

Answer: It is up to a court to determine who makes your medical decisions for you in the event you should become incapacitated. Usually, the court will declare that a parent or close family member has the legal authority to do this, not your girlfriend or boyfriend. You can, however, grant your partner this right by creating certain estate planning documents such as a health care power of attorney.

Question 3: What about common law couples?

Answer: The phrase “common law” couple is widely misused. There are only a small minority of states that allow for common-law marriages, and a couple that is married through common law is a legally married couple. However, there is no time limit that automatically makes a couple common-law married. You have to meet very specific criteria to be a common-law couple, and the vast majority of cohabitating couples do not qualify.

A new study published by economists at Duke University details exactly how pervasive the cost increases have become. The study shows that the average morbidly obese person loses about one month of productive work per year. This equates to a loss of about $3,800 per obese man and $3,000 per obese female per year for employers.

The average obese person also spends about $3,271 in health-care expenses per year, as opposed to only $512 for non-obese people. This increase in health care costs is absorbed by the non-obese and the obese alike. The study shows that the average obese man costs a total of $967 per year in health-care premiums or Medicaid expenses that must be paid by others. The cost for an obese woman is more than triple that, at about $3,220 per year.

As costs continue to rise, lawmakers and policymakers have begun addressing systemic problem caused by the rise in obesity. For example, the health-care reform law of 2010 allows employers to increase health care premiums paid by obese workers by up to 50% if that worker refuses to participate in an approved wellness program.

Question 1: What is a common-law marriage?

A common-law marriage exists only under very limited circumstances. If a couple lives together, is of legal age, intends to become married, and present themselves to the public as a married couple, only then can they be considered a common-law couple. However, the couple must also live in one of the 9 states that allow people to get married in this manner.

Question 2: What if we lived together for seven years?

There is no state that has a time requirement associated with common-law marriage. This means that you can become common-law married after a very brief or very long time, as long as you meet the legal requirements. Further, there is no state that automatically declares you to be married if you’ve lived together for a certain number of years.

Question 3: What are my rights as a common-law spouse?

If you are legally married through common-law, you are a married couple just like any other. This means you have the right to inherit from each other if one of you should die.

A public notary is a state official who can official recognize signatures and administer oaths. Because of this official capacity, some people believe that having a notary sign your will means that the Will becomes legal. This is not true. No state requires you to notarize your Will, and doing so will not by itself make the will of valid document.

Question 2: If I don’t need a notary, what do I need?

In order to create a valid Will you, the testator, must sign your Will after you create it. You must also do so in the presence of two witnesses and have the witnesses sign the document as well. You must be a competent adult at the time of signing Will, as do the witnesses.

Question 3: What about a self-proving Will?

A self-proving Will is one that is accompanied by an additional document known as an affidavit. An affidavit is a sworn statement that is signed and notarized. When the Will is accompanied by an affidavit from the witnesses stating that they signed the Will and witnessed the testator signing the Will, this is known as a self-proving Will. With the self-proving Will, the probate court judge will not have to call the witnesses to testify that they saw testator sign the will because the affidavit will serve as the sworn statement from the witnesses.

Officials revised their number after they learned more information about the 24,000 files originally stolen when hackers breached the security system. These files each contained information on up to several hundred individual patients, drastically increasing the number of people impacted. The information stolen included Social Security numbers, names, addresses, dates of birth, and employer identification numbers.

The server also contained data from a state program providing health care to low-income children. This information is of particular value to hackers because children do not have credit reports. Thus, any financial accounts opened in the child’s name are much more difficult to detect.

State officials are notifying patients affected by this security breach with a letter. However, anyone receiving Medicaid in Utah should closely monitor your credit card statement and bank accounts over the next several months. Any suspicious or unauthorized activity should be addressed quickly by contacting your bank or credit card company.

Ever since she refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus to a white passenger in 1955, Ms. Parks has been a figurehead and defining symbol of the civil rights struggle of the 1950s and 1960s. Her fame and notoriety has caused many of her personal possessions and memorabilia to become incredibly valuable. The subject of the probate battle has primarily been who owns much of this memorabilia. The contest was between 15 of Ms. Parks’ nieces and nephews and the representatives of the nonprofit organization she started, the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development.

A Michigan appeals court had previously ruled that the 15 nieces and nephews were the rightful owners of the memorabilia because they were the legal heirs of Ms. Parks. However, the Michigan Supreme Court overturned that ruling in December of 2011, stating that the property should be in the possession of the Institute.

The Michigan probate court judge overseeing the case will issue orders that transfer the property to the Institute and which dictate that any proceeds from the sale of the memorabilia will be divided between the Institute and the nieces and nephews. The family members will be entitled to 20% of the proceeds while the institute will receive the 80% share.

Many people mistakenly believe that only the wealthy need to create a Will. If you are an adult and have any property at all, or have any specific wishes about what happens after your death, you need to create a Will. If you are concerned that hiring an attorney to help you create your last will and testament will be too expensive for you, will costs are usually not very high, and will often save your family money when it comes time to distribute your assets.

My Will can allow my estate avoid the probate process.

The probate process is the set of legal rules that must be followed whenever you die leaving behind specific assets. If you create a Will, the document must be submitted before a probate court so the court can determine whether or not it is valid. The Will does not allow you to avoid probate. However, a Will in conjunction with other estate planning devices, such as trusts, can help you avoid probate as much as possible while still allowing you to use your will as a sort of safety net for anything you miss.

If I have a Trust I don’t need a Will at all.

While having a living trust or creating a will that establishes a testamentary trust can be very beneficial, creating a trust does not eliminate the need for having a last Will and testament. Only through your Will can you nominate an executor, nominate a guardian for your children, and take other specific steps. If you don’t have a Will, your estate plan will always be incomplete.

Under the law, individuals who have a yearly income of about $15,000 will be eligible for Medicaid coverage. Families of four with an income of about $30,000 will also be eligible, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. The expanded coverage will take effect in January of 2014.

However, there is currently a challenge to the constitutionality of the expansion provisions that is set to be heard by the Supreme Court of the United States. The court will hear oral arguments on the challenge and is expected to issue a ruling no later than July of 2012. If the court approves the provisions of the law of the expansion will take effect as planned.

Some physician groups have expressed concerns that the sudden increase in the number of Medicaid patients may negatively affect patient care. Some Medicaid patients already face difficulty when they need a specialist, such as a pediatrician, and many physicians say that current Medicaid reimbursement rates do not encourage new physicians to take on Medicaid patients.

However, despite the potential problems with expanded coverage five states and the District of Columbia have already adopted the expanded coverage requirements. Illinois is also planning on expanding its Medicaid coverage before the 2014 deadline.