Gullett Sanford Robinson & Martin PLLC
Repeal of Tennessee Inheritance Tax Effective January 1, 2016 Happy (Belated) New Year! We have great news regarding changes in the inheritance tax laws that may impact you, your family, or your clients. As of January 1, 2016, Tennessee no longer has a state inheritance tax. This change means that going forward, Tennessee estates will not pay Tennessee…
Protecting Your Children’s Inheritance: How the Ashley Madison Scandal Relates to Estate Planning The Ashley Madison leaks jolted Americans with the harsh reality that marital infidelity is on the rise. With more than 37 million Ashley Madison usernames exposed, it is apparent that the Internet and social media has created an instant pathway for extramarital…
Millions of Wills and Probate Records Now Online at Ancestry.com: How to Maintain Your Family’s Privacy Ancestry.com recently shared the launch of their online collection of more than 170 million pages of wills and probate records from US decedents. Ancestry’s online collection of wills, however, is not the first of its kind. In fact, wills…
How to Retroactively Fix a Defective Will in Tennessee (Post Mortem Planning) Estate plans for most Tennessee residents drafted prior to 2012 were structured to minimize Tennessee inheritance taxes and federal estate taxes. Since then, Tennessee’s death tax landscape has drastically changed and for many Tennesseans their estate plans may be outdated and potentially subject…
What is a Prenuptial Agreement and Should You Sign One Before Getting Married? A prenuptial agreement, sometimes referred to as an antenuptial agreement, is a written contract that sets the ground rules concerning property acquired prior to marriage. Although the terms are negotiable, generally speaking the contract provides that neither party has any obligation to…
We’ll Be Back Soon! You may have noticed that TN Estate of Mind has been on hiatus for a couple weeks – for a very good reason! Rob Hazard, editor of TN Estate of Mind, welcomed his fourth child, Crosby Pierce Hazard, last Wednesday. We’ll be back in action soon with new blog posts once…
Should I Update My Old Will by Using a Codicil or Executing a New Will? Well-written, estate-planning documents are drafted to be flexible and usually do not require frequent change. However, when major life events or transitions occur, estate-planning documents may need updating. In Tennessee, the most common way to update an outdated will is…
Why Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts (ILITs) are Dead for Most Tennesseans An irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) is a trust that when properly drafted and funded removes life insurance proceeds from a decedent’s estate. This means none of the life insurance proceeds are subject to Tennessee inheritance taxes or federal estate taxes. Wow. What a…
Avoiding Will Contests in Tennessee Lawyers often say tongue-in-cheek that the first thing they teach you in law school is “anyone can sue anyone for anything.” While there may be some truth to this statement, there are certain techniques a careful estate-planning attorney can employ to reduce the possibility of a will or trust contest.…
Five Reasons To Appoint a Professional Trustee One part of devising an effective estate plan is deciding who is best to serve as trustee. Some people are confident in family members or other personal acquaintances and prefer they serve if able. Others prefer having a professional/corporate trustee serve. Here are five reasons to name a…