New Jersey residents can potentially minimize future estate tax with a credit shelter trust. This trust allows your surviving spouse to inherit the trust and pass it along to your children when he or she dies without incurring tax. If you have estate planning on your...

New Jersey Estate Planning and Probate Law Blog
What should you know about New Jersey powers of attorney?
If part of your estate planning includes executing a durable power of attorney, you should familiarize yourself with New Jersey’s requirements. As FindLaw explains, your POA likely will grant someone else, called your attorney in fact, the right to make health care...
What is a resident trust?
As you work on your estate plan, you will learn about a range of products you can use to leave your assets to heirs or organize the different aspects of your estate. One such term you may hear is a resident trust. According to the State of New Jersey website,...
What type of person makes for a good executor?
New Jersey residents like you work hard on your estate. It makes sense to work just as hard on your estate plan. After all, you want the transfer to go as smoothly as possible after your death. To ensure this smooth transition, you must have an intelligent, capable...
Optimizing federal estate tax planning
Past posts on this blog detailed the fact that New Jersey residents face the potential of their estate being subject to tax once they pass on. With proper planning, however, they may be able to limit that potential liability. Does the same hold true for federal estate...
Child guardianship and your estate plan
If you are setting up an estate plan, there are a number of different topics you need to explore, from the financial impact of choosing a particular type of estate plan to taxes and dividing assets among beneficiaries. However, if you are the parent of a young child,...
Estate planning can help recent Powerball winner and others
New Jersey residents may recall hearing about the 44-year-old Dominican immigrant who recently won the Powerball jackpot. According to northjersey.com, the man opted for a lump sum payment of approximately $211 million, which was reduced to $152 million after taxes....
Setting up wills should be at the top of New Year resolution lists
It is that time of year again. January is typically when New Jersey residents turn their backs on the past year and focus on goals for the next. While some New Year resolutions may seem trivial, estate planning goals are not. If you do not have a will – or have not...
Know when you need to update your estate plan
After creating your estate plan, you, like many people, might have thought you would have no need to update it frequently – or at all. If your relationships are stable and your plans for your assets are firm, you may see no point in making any changes. Yet, life...
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