Living Issues Archives - Timins Law Group

Hey Expats: Come Home to Get Your Family’s Money

Posted on February 16, 2026

Hey Expats: Come Home to Get Your Family’s Money Despite the flaccid threats of political naysayers who threaten to leave the country after every presidential election (only to realize the United States is a markedly better place to live than countries with poutine, meme bans and gulags), some Americans actually do leave the U.S. on a near permanent basis. These novice ambassadors of American culture do typically maintain their U.S. citizenship for several reasons, some of which have to do with maintaining some financial benefit. But being an expat – or having an expatriated citizen be a beneficiary or fiduciary of your Estate – can lead to a lot of Estate Planning challenges, and post-mortem difficulties that

New York’s Proposed “Right to Die” Law is Lame

Posted on January 8, 2026

New York’s Proposed “Right to Die” Law is Lame We don’t have a choice to be born into this world, and until recently people were not even given the legal right to leave it on our terms. People helplessly watched their mentally competent loved ones physically suffer during their last few months of life with no right to end their pain. And while society’s opinions regarding more liberal end-of-live options changed long ago, countries and states have only recently passed laws regarding a human’s right to face their death on their terms. After a moral grudge match between two diametrically opposed philosophies, in 2025 New York’s assembly finally pushed through a right to die bill, which languished for months,

No Country for Old Men: Don’t Name an Elderly Executor or Trustee

Posted on November 26, 2025

No Country for Old Men: Don’t Name an Elderly Executor or Trustee While I don’t have a lot of new material to share during my first consultation with prospects, a popular one-liner I use is “You’re not old until you are 92.” And while Christie Brinkly will be hotter than your college girlfriend and Chuck Norris will still be kick blasting 2x4s when they are nonagenarians, EVERYONE ELSE in their 90s is OLD. And being elderly and an Executor or Trustee can be a bad combination for both fiduciary and beneficiary alike. In a world where we speak in real time with people 10,000 miles away, transfer millions of dollars with a tap on our cellphone, and travel

ANOTHER Reason Wills are Cruddy: Testamentary Trusts

Posted on September 26, 2025

ANOTHER Reason Wills are Cruddy: Testamentary Trusts Yep, I’m here to bash on New York Probate and Wills again, so if you love large legal fees, Court intervention and long waits for unnecessarily complex services, you may want to start watching your favorite rerun of Better Call Saul now. What would you say if I told you that after going through the many annoyances of Probate you may still be stuck working with the Court for another 20+ years? I’m guessing the words would be colorful, like the post credits scene of that night in college you tried Jello shots. Yes, when you use a Will to protect assets you transfer to other friends and family members, your

TREAT YOURSELF: Order Extra Death Certificates

Posted on August 14, 2025

TREAT YOURSELF: Order Extra Death Certificates Sometimes the only good thing to come from a person’s death is the money they leave to others. So why do so many families get gun shy spending a few extra dollars for what is arguably the most important document of that person’s post-mortem affairs? It’s totally normal, and always to your benefit, to order many more Death Certificates of your departed loved one than you think you will need, preferably sooner rather than later. Death Certificates Transfer Everything Aside from joint accounts, you cannot transfer any property from a deceased person’s assets without a valid (and usually original) Death Certificate. Times you will likely need a Death Certificate to

Pregnant and Brain Dead: How to Make Your Living Will Effective

Posted on June 27, 2025

Pregnant and Brain Dead: How to Make Your Living Will Effective The heart wrenching story of Adriana Smith exhibits both the legal limitations placed on Living Wills, and the impossibility of planning for every potential end of life decision we may have to face. Adriana, aged 30, went from having headaches one day to experiencing deadly blood clots in her brain the next morning, leaving her brain dead. To add to this tragedy, Adriana was well into her first trimester of pregnancy and under Georgia state law could no longer have her life support terminated due to the state’s abortion laws (and no, this article is not going to discuss abortion law, no no no). And while Adriana’s

When Bill Met Jordan: Does Dad Really Need Protection From Himself?

Posted on May 8, 2025

When Bill Met Jordan: Does Dad Really Need Protection From Himself? It sounds like the most exhausting romcom script a Hollywood agent has to read since the script where Adam Sandler tried to date Jennifer Aniston for a seventh movie: Aging, successful NFL coach is on a flight, sits next to college cheerleader, orders her a Cherry Mojito, and every category of “journalist” gets a seat at the dinner table. Cheerleader (starring Jordan Hudson) starts dressing scantily and acting like a boss, Coach (played by Bill I’m-Still-Pinching-Myself Belichick) is allowed to visit her dorm room and stream Netflix and stuff. Tabloids and families shriek “Dad is falling under the spell of Young Girl,” Young Girl exerts more influence, buys

PROTECT YOUR MONEY BY FREEZING YOUR CREDIT NOW

Posted on April 3, 2025

PROTECT YOUR MONEY BY FREEZING YOUR CREDIT NOW Your personal financial information is worth stealing. And it is also worth defending. The unfortunate truth is you cannot stop your identity from being stolen, but you can still protect your credit and money when your identity is stolen. We all go out of our way to defend our Social Security Number and credit card information, we do not answer phone calls from Wichita or Biloxi or Chevy Chase (the place and the person), and we uncontrollably yell at ourselves with crazy eyes in the mirror every time we open an email attachment from a suspicious address. Sadly, while we are doing everything we can to protect our financial information,

What Should I Keep (and Not Keep) in My Home Safe?

Posted on February 14, 2025

What Should I Keep (and Not Keep) in My Home Safe? A home safe is like a kitchen knife: Nicey and slicey when used precisely, but dicey and pricy if you are too feisty. While bank safe deposit boxes require you to visit your bank during operating hours (and Court oversight to open after you have died), a safe at home allows you access to your belongings and information at all hours with no bank manager looking over your shoulder, and no monthly fee. On the flip side, burglary or a party absconding with your safe’s contents may be a concern. So here is a list of suggestions you should consider before you fill your safe. What to Keep

Don’t Let Aunt Mildred’s Photo ID Expire

Posted on December 20, 2024

You will need valid photo identification for the remainder of your life. From signing legal documents to opening new bank accounts, government offices and financial organizations require valid picture identification to legally transact business. So it is concerning to learn that most elderly individuals do not have any valid photo ID, and downright frustrating to realize this lack of legal photo identification can cost families tens of thousands of dollars during the last years of their loved ones’ lives. As we age, our photo identification expires and is not renewed for mostly predictable reasons: People no longer plan on traveling so they do not renew their passport, they move in with a family member or to an assisted living

Living Wills in New York May be Useless

Posted on November 14, 2024

There are few rational reasons to having a Living Will in New York, almost no legal benefits to having one, and Living Wills may cause more confusion than guidance in your final days of life. There are several misperceptions concerning what a Living Will actually is. For starters, the very name “Living Will” is a misnomer: It is neither a living document (because it discusses your desire to have someone “pull the plug” on life sustaining measures), nor is it a will (a document which distributes property upon your death). Some people refer to this document as an “Advanced Directive”, but I am pretty sure the Advanced Directive is a Star Trek term regarding Captain Kirk’s alien kissing fetish or

Thinking About Divorce? Sign Your Will First

Posted on May 22, 2020

Unless there is a prenuptial agreement stating your husband or wife gets nothing when you pass away, if you are married when you die your spouse often has several rights to your estate. Some states, such as New York, entitle your spouse to at least 1/3 of your gross estate even if you leave them nothing, and if you own property with them jointly they get all of that property when you die. And even worse, if you don’t do any estate planning your spouse may be the sole beneficiary of your estate. So if your marriage is failing I suggest that you fire the first shot at your partner and disinherit them before you file for divorce. For people

Some of the Many Reasons Estate Attorneys Should NOT Work with Citibank

Posted on January 13, 2020

While I have made sweeping generalizations that corporate trustees will take money from you faster than hitting after you draw 17 in Vegas, it’s pretty rare that I overtly criticize a particular financial institution in my blogs. But since I can’t hide my frustration anymore (and since proving libelous behavior requires a written statement to be untrue, which none of the following is) I feel it is time to send out a warning to my Estate Planning and Elder Law attorney colleagues: Do NOT work with Citibank, and tell your clients not to, for the following reasons: The Inmates Get the Keys to the Asylum: Citibank allows their desk clerks to review your legal documents and make their own assessment

When “Transfer On Death” Accounts Go Bad

Posted on January 7, 2020

If you have ever had to deal with a complicated or contested Probate over a family member’s Will, you know that a lot of your problems would have been avoided if funds had instead been held in Transfer On Death [“TOD”] accounts: While Probating a Will requires a lot of court paperwork, time, and the cost of paying an attorney to help navigate through the proceeding, TOD accounts transfer as Operation of Law assets, meaning all the beneficiary of the account has to do is show up with an original death certificate. But sometimes TOD accounts are not properly set up, cause confusion or secrecy where none was desired, or end up being transferred to people you don’t want them

Getting Divorced? Leave Children’s Life Insurance to a Trust

Posted on November 15, 2019

As a member of the First Spouse Turned Demogorgon Club, I can tell you with hindsight that divorce can be a wonderful thing: No more arguments, no more awkward Thanksgivings with creepy in-laws, no more washing the dishes during prime football hours. But at the same time, divorce is almost never positive during the initial process, self-doubt and anger consumes you, and (ultimately) you will have to deal with financial matters, particularly if you have minor children. And when child support or maintenance is in the picture, your former best friend is going to want to make sure that cool hard cash is still there if you pass away during the payment period. So, purchasing life insurance to cover your

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

Your Wills & Trusts Should Require Your Children to Have Prenups

Posted on March 26, 2019

After you die there are way too many evil forces that can take a swipe at gifts to your children. Credit card companies may receive unpaid debts from your transfers to your children; the street level dope dealer may have his next good run with your child as his primary client; even the government may take much of the funds if your child becomes disabled. But for some reason, nothing annoys a parent more than knowing their soon-to-be-ex-son-in-law Chad is going to get a hold of your bequest to your daughter Becky (and now your son Bryce too, if that’s how he rolls, since greed has no sexual preference). All Wills and Trusts should have substance abuse provisions, spendthrift provisions

Codicils and Trust Amendments May Burn Your Estate

Posted on March 15, 2019

Hiring an attorney has been obnoxiously expensive since the first time a guy’s donkey backing into another guy’s mud version of today’s tiny houses: You tend to want a person or document that best insures you are going to get things done your way, but good results cost a lot of money. So, it is not surprising that people prefer to change their Wills using Codicils and Trust Amendments instead of redrafting the entire original document. I have concluded this is often a mistake and now believe clients should spring for the costs of redrafting their entire document. Codicils are quick changes to existing Wills, and only modify the portions they are intended to change (and maintain the remaining contents

Last Minutes Gifts and Transfers for 2018

Posted on December 27, 2018

Congratulations, you made it through Christmas / Hanukkah / Kwanza, despite the fact you were seated next to your anti-vaxxer cousin who tried to explain to you in two syllable words how the earth actually is flat. All nieces and nephews have been given your gifts (likely a sweater instead of the cool toy they desperately needed to show off to fit in on the school bus), all dishes are cleaned, and all the leftovers have been thrown out unless you are a bachelor. BUT WAIT!! You haven’t wrapped up the Holidays until you make a complete drunken fool of yourself on Snapchat slurring Old Anzine (it’s pronounced “Auld Lang Syne” in Scotland for some reason) and have made the

Bye Bye 24 Hour Caregivers for Aging New Yorkers

Posted on October 19, 2018

Many thanks to Michael LaMagna, Esq. of Riker Danzig and Evan Gilder of Redlig Financial Services for their initial article that prompted this blog. Caring for elderly family members is as exciting as spending your bachelorette party watching C-SPAN reruns (elected officials excluded, of course), so why not pay another person to help your aging Grandma or Dad feed, bath and toilet themselves? And while you are at it, why not have that person “live-in” with Grandma 24 hours a day but only pay the for 13 hours of that work at minimum wage? These were the rules permitted in New York for live-in caregivers, provided they had an 8-hour sleeping period and 3 meal breaks equaling one hour each.

Angry Brothers Agree to Settle (Mom’s Estate)

Posted on October 5, 2018

You never know how close you are to your family until you have to share an inheritance with them. I am wrapping-up a case where my client’s mother died, leaving a Will that equally-distributed her real estate between her two somewhat-acrimonious sons. Usually this apartment would be sold, proceeds disbursed, and everyone would go their separate way. However, my client’s brother insisted that he could make them more money if he improved the real estate. His brother (my client) was not so hip on this idea – none of them had any real estate investing experience – but through sheer force, perseverance and presumption his brother had his own son move in (which he did – with a few kewl

When More Money Actually Is More Problems

Posted on August 10, 2018

People let’s get over it: More money usually isn’t more problems. And if it happens to lead to more problems it is usually the kind of problems you want (I have never heard a man say that he wanted a slower Ferrari, or a woman complain that her gold and diamond tennis bracelet were too big, but I suppose it is possible). HOWEVER, there actually are a few circumstances where I can say that too much money actually does cause problems: Whenever a cliff tax is involved. As a rule of nature, cliffs only effect people when they fall off of them, but many people face financial cliffs without knowing about them and, in the dark of night, fall

4 Reasons Your Online Will is Turdy

Posted on June 14, 2018

In the world of legal documents, sometimes having nothing is better than having something. If you pass away without a Will you would hardly be the first person – thousands of people die in the United States every day without having a Will – so there are default statutes that dictate how your estate shall be distributed. True, often times these default laws do not entirely fulfill your post-mortem desires, but they may be better than drafting a faulty document from an online web site, executing it incorrectly, or drafting in ambiguities that now require extra court interpretation (and attorney costs) when you do pass away. My advice: Work with an attorney to draft your Will, even if it’s a

The 4 Ways (and Best Way) to Leave Property Using Your Will and Trust

Posted on June 7, 2018

If you have not already, one morning you will wake up and finally accept the fact that one day you shall die. Not an easy thought but coming to this inevitable conclusion earlier in life has the benefit of allowing you to plan for the things that remain when you pass: Your family, friends, legacy, and money. And while you can use accounts that name beneficiary designations to transfer some property – such as retirement plans, life insurance, and transfer-on-death accounts – only Wills and Trusts allow you to transfer property at the point-in-time you desire (such as a beneficiary attaining a certain age), and include protections for beneficiaries (from creditors, spendthrift behaviors, special needs and addiction). But how much

4 Reasons Your Family Disinherited You

Posted on May 23, 2018

I often get calls from indignant clients telling me their recently-departed parent or other family member has disinherited them, and they want to know their options. And while proving a Will that disinherits someone is never a foregone conclusion, they are usually walking up to home plate with two strikes against them. And many times, this was unexpected: The client had no clue why they were cut out of the decedent’s estate. From my experience, it is likely due to one of the following misperceptions you had: You did not give them enough attention. Face it: Spending time with elderly and sick people is not usually our go-to option for a Friday night. It can be very

6 Steps Before You Fund Your Child’s Home Down Payment

Posted on April 27, 2018

I have had an increasing number of clients approach me asking an increasingly-difficult question: “Should I provide my child with funds for her first home down payment, or focus on my own lifetime needs and leave my (presumably larger) estate as an inheritance when I pass away?” This is not an easy decision, since it depend both on the parent’s finances and health issues, and the child’s cash flow and social issues. Many middle-class parents realize their children’s purchasing power for real estate is significantly weaker than theirs was: Real estate prices have outpaced income growth over the last twenty years, while the number and cost of financial commitments (such as student loan debt and health insurance payments) have

Should I Share My Will with My Financial Advisor?

Posted on February 26, 2018

And the answer is: No. Usually. See you next week. Okay, okay, I’ll elaborate. Your Last Will and Testament is a confidential document while you are alive. When you pass away your Will may be Probated in a court – at which time it’s contents are publicly available – so that your estate’s assets are properly distributed to your choice of beneficiaries. So only you and your lawyer have access to the contents of your Will. Disinherit your son? He can’t find out while you are alive. Have more assets than your family knows about? They shall continue to live in ignorance. Don’t trust third parties with access to your confidential information? No problem, nothing to see

No One Likes Your Uncle Marvin: Isolated Aging Men

Posted on November 14, 2017

Many of us have an aging male friend or family member who is unmarried and has no children. This man, also known as your “Uncle Marvin”, is getting older, lives alone, and is probably financially prepared for the remainder of his life. But he may be completely unprepared for the legal consequences of his aging. Unlike his female counterparts, such as your Aunt May, Uncle Marvin and his male contemporaries are more likely to be emotionally isolated from other family members and socially separated from his community. In addition, our society still erroneously views men as competent, stoic loners who don’t require or desire our involvement with their lives. Even our health care and aging mechanisms are geared toward

Your Brother is Taking Your (Parent’s) Money

Posted on November 3, 2017

My grandmother used to counsel her friends with young children by sharing the phrase “Small children, small problems; big children, big problems…” Some siblings work a lot, take pride in their independence, and save their hard-earned money. And some siblings have bad luck, are victims of financial predators or our legal system (divorce, criminal “justice” matters, etc.), or they may just be lazy. While the stars perfectly aligned for the former children, the latter child gets stuck in a perpetual rut, parents or other family members start financing his lifestyle, and sibling bitterness boils. Down-on-their-luck children drain family assets, become increasingly disinterested in working, and cause fraternal discontent and animosity. Parental assets that could one day pass

Legal Documents You Should Share With Your Family

Posted on September 20, 2017

When you pass away certain information dies with you, such as where you keep your legal documents and what the contents of those documents are. Keep in mind written documents matter: The basis of our lives is run by contracts. But if those contracts cannot be found your wishes and desires could be confounded. Here are some suggestions regarding sharing and not sharing certain legal documents: Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements should always, always, ALWAYS be shared with multiple family members. These are not recorded anywhere, so if you and your soon-to-be-ex-spouse mysteriously lose your copies you need to contact your former attorneys. And remember: Attorneys in New York only have an obligation to hold onto legal work product for