New York Estate Planning, Probate, and Real Estate Lawyer

The late actor, James Gandolfini died and left an estate worth an estimated $70 million. Now thanks to bad estate planning, the IRS may take up to 50% of that estate. The larger-than-life actor gave $1.6 million dollars to various friends and relatives. He split the rest up among the following people: his two sisters-30%,…

Many people think estate planning means drawing up a will an the rest will take care of itself. That’s a common error people make. Here are a few others. Procrastination Surveys have found that not only do 50% of people with children not have a will, many don’t have any other estate planning documents drawn…

The now bankrupt Interview magazine has hundreds of creditors lined up to get paid. Chances are none of them will get paid what they’re owed, except one, the owner, Peter Brant. After Andy Warhol died in the late 1980s, Brant bought the magazine and is the company’s sole secured creditor. In bankruptcy speak that means…

Estate planning is necessary, but many people find the prospect intimidating. Quoted by laduenews.com, Meredith Murphy, an attorney with Smith Amundsen’s Estate and Business Planning Practice Group in Missouri said, “Estate planning allows an individual to manage and direct where assets are to be distributed upon their death, but [it] also lets an individual plan…

Under Medicaid laws, if you transfer certain assets five years before you apply for Medicaid, Your access to Medicaid can be delayed, the length of the delay depending on the amount of the transfer. While federal tax laws allow you to transfer up to $14,000 a year without having to pay a gift tax, Medicaid…

Former tennis great Boris Becker has denied he is bankrupt and has sought a restraining order to stop the auction of his possessions. The Telegraph reports that his attorneys have applied for a restraining order to prevent the sale of his belongings that include trophies he won at Wimbleton in the 1980s. Becker told Germany’s…

Last month, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, asked an appeals court to overturn a decision voiding California’s “right to die” law. This week an appeals court reinstated the law, at least temporarily. The Fourth District Court of Appeals in Riverside issued an immediate stay putting the End of Life Option back into effect. It also…

The former toy giant Toys R Us which has been liquidating its assets after declaring bankruptcy has found a new home for one item that they have been having trouble unloading, a statue of their mascot, Geoffrey the Giraffe. The company has been holding going out of business sales at their stores but this girafee…

It is commonly understood that you are not able to discharge student loan debt through bankruptcy. This is true…for the most part. There are circumstances where you can use bankruptcy. Forbes points us to Make Lemonade for some advice: According to Make Lemonade, there are more than 44 million borrowers who collectively owe $1.5 trillion…

In 2009, in the middle of the last recession, commercial bankruptcies peaked at a high of 8,277 in May of that year according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. Since that time they have leveled out. In May, 3,300 businesses filed for bankruptcy. While that was up from April, the number of filings have been on…