English isn’t always English. The truth is that you should never sign a legal document without having an attorney look it over first. Usually, you can find a high quality attorney who will offer a free meeting, so all you are really out is your time.
There are many examples, but I can’t tell you how often very smart people will fall for this trap. A standard order of child support, used in nearly every case in this state, has a section titled “Periodic Adjustment”. Well, any reasonably smart person would tell you that if the “does not apply” box is checked, that means that there would be no periodic adjustment – right?
WRONG! Since this section is not really written in English, what it means is that only the standard legal reasons for future modification apply. Why doesn’t it just say so? I really have no idea. All I can tell you is that if you signed an order thinking that English is really English, you could have obligated yourself to serious future legal and financial repercussions.
Take the time and get that legal document reviewed by someone who practices law in that area. It will save you time, trouble, and, just maybe, might save you from making a serious and expensive mistake.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Who is your beneficiary?
We’ve talked about the importance of estate planning, and the problems you can experience if you don’t get it done right. Unfortunately, you often don’t see the problem until it’s too late. Every now and again, we are able to prevent the problem.
I have a younger couple in the office getting wills done. They had been married for a while, and they had their first child on the way. The husband has gone to work right out of high school at Boeing. As part of the consultation, I advised them to check on beneficiary designations on life insurance policies. (If the asset doesn’t become part of your estate, then your will can’t control where it goes).
The couple came back the next week to sign their wills. They had checked the husband’s life insurance policy through his work, and found that when he was 18 he had named his buddy Bill as beneficiary of his life insurance police to “have a big party”. Well, had they not caught this error, a real tragedy might have happened if something had happened to the husband!
The moral of this story is check any asset you may have that has a beneficiary designation, life insurance, 401K’s, IRA’s, mutual funds, etc. Most of the time it isn’t a problem, but you want to make sure that who you name as beneficiary “fits” with your estate planning and tax planning goals.
One of the services my office offers is Estate Planning. There is no charge to come in and discuss this.
I have a younger couple in the office getting wills done. They had been married for a while, and they had their first child on the way. The husband has gone to work right out of high school at Boeing. As part of the consultation, I advised them to check on beneficiary designations on life insurance policies. (If the asset doesn’t become part of your estate, then your will can’t control where it goes).
The couple came back the next week to sign their wills. They had checked the husband’s life insurance policy through his work, and found that when he was 18 he had named his buddy Bill as beneficiary of his life insurance police to “have a big party”. Well, had they not caught this error, a real tragedy might have happened if something had happened to the husband!
The moral of this story is check any asset you may have that has a beneficiary designation, life insurance, 401K’s, IRA’s, mutual funds, etc. Most of the time it isn’t a problem, but you want to make sure that who you name as beneficiary “fits” with your estate planning and tax planning goals.
One of the services my office offers is Estate Planning. There is no charge to come in and discuss this.
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