Timins Law Group Blog

Why Jeffrey Epstein’s Trust Only Adds to the Murder Conspiracy

Posted on August 30, 2019

While America’s criminal justice system does not judge people to be guilty until proven guilty (even though it has no compunction with adjudicating innocent people as being guilty), Jeffrey Epstein sure does look like a bad, bad dude. The “Pimp of the Rich and Famous” would have been charged with human trafficking, statutory rape, prostitution, and likely many more demented crimes which thinking of would cause most decent people to throw up in their mouth a little bit. His trial and any plea bargain could have been an enormous bombshell that would have ruined at least a few people with HUGE shoes to fill. It was in this context that Jeffrey Epstein somehow hung himself from a five-foot high bunkbed

PSS Webinar – 10 Mistakes in Wills

Posted on August 9, 2019

From time to time, Daniel Timins has donated his time and knowledge to PSS (Presbyterian Senior Services) to give advice and knowledge to those in need. Mr. Timins has set-up a series of Webinars to give them an understanding of Wills, Trusts, and Estate Planning. Below you will find the second videos Dan has put together for PSS on “Top 10 Mistakes in Wills”. About PSS PSS was founded in 1962 as Presbyterian Senior Services by volunteers to serve older members of their church community. Today, PSS is an innovative, multi-service nonprofit 501(c)(3) agency whose mission is to strengthen the capacity of older New Yorkers, their families, and communities to thrive. To learn more about PSS visit: www.pssusa.org

PSS – Estate Planning Webinar: Wills, Trusts, and Estates

Posted on August 9, 2019

From time to time, Daniel Timins has donated his time and knowledge to PSS (Presbyterian Senior Services) to give advice and knowledge to those in need. Mr. Timins has set-up a series of Webinars to give them an understanding of Wills, Trusts, and Estate Planning. Below you will find one of the first videos Dan has put together for PSS. About PSS PSS was founded in 1962 as Presbyterian Senior Services by volunteers to serve older members of their church community. Today, PSS is an innovative, multi-service nonprofit 501(c)(3) agency whose mission is to strengthen the capacity of older New Yorkers, their families, and communities to thrive. To learn more about PSS visit: www.pssusa.org

Damian Hurley: Why Minimizing Estate Taxes is Not Always a Good Thing

Posted on July 29, 2019

For decades estate attorneys have been driven by a prime directive, a primary motivating cause that overcomes all other client desires: Minimizing estate taxes. I believe this is a huge mistake, and a recent court decision highlighted by a stern millionaire patriarch, celebrities, a free-living playboy, and an irrevocable trust shows us why. Today it takes a decent amount of money ($11.4 million or more) to face a federal estate tax when you die, and there are also certain irrevocable trusts, including GRATs and GRUTs, that further minimize or eliminate estate taxes. So, for many of us this article is not relevant, but for those who it is, it should come as no surprise that estate attorneys have traditionally focused

Wills: What Do Executors Get Paid in New York?

Posted on July 3, 2019

When your Will is probated your Executor is entitled to receive a commission for their work. And while you can define what that commission is in your Will, most people choose New York’s statutory guideline for that commission (the concern is that if the fee is too low no one will want to be Executor, since you can’t force someone to do the job). In New York, that statute is created by the Surrogate’s Court Procedures Act, Section 2307, and it has a lot of juicy details that differentiate it from other state’s more-streamlined statutory commissions: Keep in mind that any assets which pass through a living trust, a joint account, or assets passing by “operation of law” (such as

What You Can Do Now to Help Your Parents Apply for Medicaid

Posted on June 28, 2019

You may have heard it before: Someone’s elderly parent or grandparent breaks their hip or had a stroke or any one of the thousands of things that can happen to us when we start drinking Ensure for lunch, and now the family needs to apply for Medicaid for that person’s long term care needs. But the family members are having all types of trouble finding the necessary documents that Medicaid requires, such as marriage certificates, identification, proof of Social Security, tax returns, copies of all financial statements, the list is pretty lengthy. So, what can your parents do now to help you apply for Medicaid for them at some point in the future? 1. Draft a Power of Attorney: Having a