Acting as Fiduciary Can Be Hard, Even Dangerous, Work
When you think about planning your estate, you probably focus on who will receive what share of your property. You might not focus as clearly on choosing your personal representative or trustee. Consider your choices carefully: acting as fiduciary is not so much an honor as it is a chore. What is a fiduciary? Lawyers […]
Two Adult Adoptions Lead to Uncertain Inheritance Outcomes
JANUARY 2, 2017 VOLUME 24 NUMBER 1 You probably know that it’s possible — though state laws vary quite a bit — to adopt an adult. But have you given any thought to what effect the adoption might have on inheritance rights? That’s the sort of problem that gets lawyers (and judges) excited. Two recent […]
Lawyer Suspended After Representing Wife as Conservator
JUNE 13, 2011 VOLUME 18 NUMBER 21 Richard J. Murphy was first admitted to practice law in 1964. He was a fixture in local political and legal circles in Osceola, Iowa, for nearly fifty years. He was the attorney for the City of Osceola, and he had been the County Attorney years earlier. His private […]
Reciprocal Wills Enforceable After Death of One Spouse
JULY 26, 2010 VOLUME 17, NUMBER 23 Imagine a couple, each married for the second time. Perhaps each has children from a first marriage. Perhaps the couple has been married for years — even decades. They think of all the children as “their” children, even though they fully understand that the other spouse’s children are […]
Iowa Allows Medicaid Recovery Against Joint Tenancy Property
APRIL 10, 2006 VOLUME 13, NUMBER 41 As many states have become more aggressive about recovering the costs of Medicaid care from the estates of deceased beneficiaries, one issue has appeared to be insoluble. Federal law permits states to make a claim against property held in joint tenancy at the time of a Medicaid recipient’s […]