Arielle M. Prangner, of the Estate Planning Journal, has made available for download her article “Just A Will Won’t Cut It: Planning for the Transfer of Non-Probate Assets at Death”, published in the Estate Planning Journal. The abstract is as follows:
When crafting a comprehensive estate plan for clients, planning for and
coordinating assets that pass outside of probate is an imperative part of the
process.1 Most clients’ estates include non-probate assets; in fact, the make up the majority of the value of a client’s gross
estate.3 Accordingly, attorneys must advise clients to incorporate these assets
into the estate plan, and not just as an afterthought.4
Obviously, attorneys must ascertain each client’s personal goals
concerning the overall estate plan in order to determine the ultimate
disposition of the client’s non-probate assets.5 The attorney must then
identify and analyze each non-probate asset and educate the client regarding
how each asset should be distributed at the client’s death.6 The paperwork
involved in directing the disposition of non-probate assets can sometimes be
daunting.7 The forms required are as varied as the financial institutions, life
insurance companies, plan administrators, and plan custodians involved.8
This Article is not intended to address every issue associated with the
coordination of non-probate assets with the rest of the estate plan.9 In
particular, the nuances of the income tax and distribution considerations
involved in the disposition of retirement plans are not addressed.10 Rather,
the goals of this Article are to highlight issues that may influence the
suggested disposition of non-probate assets, to assist in the identification of
non-probate assets that may not be easily recognizable, and to provide
guidance about how to manage some of the paperwork involved.11
To read the full article, click: “Just A Will Won’t Cut It: Planning for the Transfer of Non-Probate Assets at Death”
Posted by Marin Larkin, Associate Editor, Wealth Strategies Journal.
Wealth Strategies Journal 