October 8, 2015 – 3:07 pm
The Facts: I recently divorced my spouse. I was told that once the divorce was finalized, it won’t matter that my spouse is named as the primary beneficiary of my estate in my Will since that designation will essentially be ignored. The Questions: Is it true that my estate will not pass to my ex-spouse […]
October 29, 2014 – 10:19 am
At least once a week a new client who owns real property with someone else comes to my office with a question about his rights and obligations with respect to his joint ownership of the property. Oftentimes the questions arise because the owners do not see eye to eye as to who is responsible for […]
March 20, 2014 – 10:58 am
The Facts: When I got married in 2000 my wife named me as the beneficiary on her life insurance policy. We were divorced two years ago. Our divorce settlement provides that my ex-spouse is required to continue paying her life insurance premiums and is prohibited from removing me as the beneficiary. I was told that […]
April 11, 2013 – 11:51 am
I’ve met with a number of clients lately who have been separated from their spouses for many years but, who, for some reason, never obtained a divorce. All are under the impression that the long separation effectively cut off any rights their spouse may have to their estates. Unfortunately, they are mistaken. In New York […]
March 13, 2013 – 12:36 pm
Recently I was reminded of how important it is to update your Will when circumstances change. A client came to see me about probating her husband’s Will. Unfortunately, her husband had signed the Will before he met my client and did not take the time to revise it. Since he did not have any children […]
February 18, 2010 – 7:14 pm
The Facts: My husband and I agreed to separate over 20 years ago. Since neither of us wanted to remarry, we never filed for a divorce. In my Will my estate is divided equally between my current partner and my son. The Question: I was told that my husband may have a claim against my estate when […]
