You may already know that the federal estate tax exemption for 2024 has been $13.61 million. We now have the tax exemption amounts for 2025.The federal estate tax exemption is the amount your estate must exceed before you will owe any estate tax. Some p

Nominating a guardian (in your will) for an Arizona family member can save legal fees, hassle and time. Maybe you have a minor child, or a child with a disability. For that matter, you might have an incapacitated spouse. You even might have a spouse at ri

Room and board agreements don't jump out as the most important item for your SSI-receiving child to consider if they live at home. But they can be important. Why?As we explain in this week's podcast episode, signing such an agreement with your son or da

If you have a child with a disability, you might be familiar with individually designed living arrangements (IDLAs). We often help clients create estate plans that make it easier for their child to benefit from an IDLA.Can individually designed living a

We often get calls from family members who are eager to start preparing for a death of a loved one. Perhaps mom has entered hospice. Maybe the hospital has indicated that it's soon time to remove life support for a sibling. Or dad is failing rapidly, and

Clients often ask us to update their estate planning documents by preparing codicils or trust amendments. The idea of a codicil, particularly, is rooted in centuries of experience. If all you want to do is to make a minor change, wouldn't it be easier to

From time to time we relate stories about do-it-yourself estate planning gone awry. It's not that we get pleasure from explaining common mistakes. And we're not just trying to terrify people about self-help. We're trying to make it clear that the problems

Trustee disclosure is required by Arizona law. But how much disclosure?Arizona's Trust Code sets some minimum requirements. The trustee of an irrevocable trust must let the "qualified" beneficiaries know that there is a trust, and how to reach the trust

What are spendthrift trusts? It's pretty simple, really. A spendthrift trust has language directing the trustee not to honor attempts by the beneficiary's creditors to reach the trust assets. It also prohibits the beneficiary from encumbering the trust's

Maybe you are involved in a trust administration proceeding. You might have created a revocable trust and wonder what you need to do to maintain it during your life. Perhaps you and your spouse created a trust, and you wonder what needs to be done now tha