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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

    Intermediate

  • work Practice Area

    Estate Planning

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Thursday, October 24, 2024

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.


  • Live Online


    On Demand

$297.00

This course is $0 with these passes:

CLE
ALL

This CLE course will provide estate planners with a deep and practical guide to blended families' trust and estate planning challenges. The panelist will offer specific guidance on avoiding probate or beneficiary challenges, and estate planning vehicles to incorporate prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. The panelist will also offer a critical analysis of methods to minimize litigation risks and handling claims. It will also touch upon mechanisms to avoid a guardianship litigation.

Faculty

Laura M. Brancato
Attorney
Brancato Law Group, PLLC

Ms. Brancato focuses her practice on elder law, medicaid planning, estate litigation and planning and special education advocacy and litigation.

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Description

Among the greatest challenges for estate planners is planning for clients in a second or subsequent marriage. The intricacies increase when one or both spouses have children from prior marriages and in situations where age or premarital assets vary greatly between the spouses. Effective estate planning design balances providing for the surviving spouse and either party's desire to pass premarital assets to pre-marriage children.

Because of the issues unique to subsequent marriages, many ownership structures and asset titling strategies common to first marriage estate plans may not be appropriate for second marriages. Joint tenancy property can trigger more complex probate.

Additionally, estate planning council must structure testamentary and trust documents to shield against beneficiary challenges, which are more likely when children from prior marriages are involved and may result in litigation. Estate planners should know the impact of in terrorem clauses in wills and trust operating documents and the impact guardianship proceedings have on wills, established estate planning documents.

Listen as Laura M. Brancato, Partner at Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, provides a thorough and practical guide to the technical aspects of designing and implementing estate plans for second marriages and blended families.

Outline

  1. Estate planning challenges unique to clients in second marriages or with blended families
  2. Impact of prenuptial and postnuptial agreements on estate plans
  3. Balancing maintenance of surviving spouse with a desire to pass on premarital assets to children or other beneficiaries
  4. Protecting against beneficiary challenges and litigation, both after and during life

Benefits

The panelist will review these and other key issues:

  • What mechanisms must estate planners be aware of to protect estate plans involving blended families from beneficiary challenges?
  • What is the potential claim that can arise and what are effective strategies for handling litigation?