Michael Bailey - Author at Michael Bailey Law

Don’t Go to Court if You Don’t Have To

Most people I know, including my attorney friends, don’t want to go to court. They all tend to think: “The less people end up in court, the better.” I will focus on avoiding court as it relates to estate planning in this blog. When I first meet with people, many of them tell me that they want to set up a will so that their estate does not go … [Read more...]

Is it better to have a will or a trust? Not Everything You Heard Is True

I cannot tell you the number of times I have had people as if it is better to have a will or a trust. I probably stopped counting when the 10,000th person asked me, and I have moved well beyond that number at this point. The simple, yet unsatisfying answer to the question of whether it is better to have a will or a trust is that it depends on … [Read more...]

It’s Your Estate Plan: Making it Truly Yours

Before I started my estate planning practice, I worked for a firm handling tax resolution cases. Basically, I tried to help people who owed past due taxes to the IRS or to the state tax departments. Mostly this consisted of negotiating payment plans - allowing people or businesses to pay back past due taxes over time, but I also helped eliminate … [Read more...]

What To Do If Someone Dies With An Estate Plan Already Set Up

Many of the topics I have covered on my blog have to do with what happens if someone dies without a plan, or how not having a plan can be problematic. I spend a lot of time encouraging people to set up a plan, so that they can have their affairs in order. Similar to my last blog post, where I talked about what you need to know about your estate … [Read more...]

What You Need To Know About Your Estate Plan After You Die

Many of the topics I have covered on my blog have to do with what happens if someone dies without a plan, or how not having a plan can be problematic. I spend a lot of time encouraging people to set up a plan, so that they can have their affairs in order. This blog post will be devoted to what happens when you have a plan in place. The timeline … [Read more...]

Why Reading A Blog Post Is Not A Substitute For Working With an Estate Planning Attorney

In my blog posts, I describe some aspect of estate planning and give certain information related to that topic. However, I do not give out all of the information on a topic. Instead, I give information on an estate planning topic, which is helpful to answer general questions, or to help describe the basics. I generally emphasize the need to talk … [Read more...]

Second Marriages and Blended Families: How to Protect What Needs Protecting

In the early 1990’s I used to watch TV on Friday nights, when ABC had it’s TGIF lineup. One of the shows that aired was called “Step by Step” and the show was about a blended family – a family where the spouses have remarried and kids are not all from just the married couple. The show followed the adventures, and misadventures, of combining two … [Read more...]

Fair Estate Planning For Second Marriage: What Couples You Need To Know

If you are about to get remarried, you obviously want to celebrate, but you need to consider the advice my sister gave me when I go married. She told me, “It is great to get married, but then life just kind of goes on, but you are married. You are married, and that is GREAT, but you still need to live your normal life.” My sister was not trying … [Read more...]

An Estate Planning Carol: How Your Estate Plan is the Perfect Final Gift For Your Children

In Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas tale “A Christmas Carol” the miserly Ebeneezer Scrooge is taught the true meaning of Christmas. The lesson is taught by three ghosts, the ghost of Christmas Past, ghost of Christmas Present, and ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. In the end, Ebeneezer Scrooge learns his lesson and becomes a generous, happy … [Read more...]

Creating Certainty in a Time of Uncertainty

A couple of weeks ago I was participating in a seminar with a financial planner friend. Our presentation discussed how to best approach financial concerns in retirement, and how to make money last through retirement. My part was to talk a bit about the legal planning necessary for retirement, including the basics of estate planning, like a will, … [Read more...]