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The Future Estate
Volume 6, Issue 2, February 2015
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| About My Firm
Law Office of Christopher Guest, PLLC
888 16th St., NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20006
703.237.3161 (VA)
703.574.5654 (Fax)
Admitted in DC, VA, MD and NY
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Law Office of Christopher Guest
A Law Office Planning for the Future
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So, can anyone tell me when the snow and cold weather will end. I like snow as much as the next person but I could use a warm day soon!
This month's topics include: using will substitutes in your estate plan, what is simultaneous death and the troubles with Tom Clancy' clear and present danger estate plan.
Sincerely,
Chris
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Beneficiary Designations on Will Substitutes 
The classic methods of wealth distribution at death, via a last will and testament or intestacy, are widely used. In recent years there has greater use of "will substitutes" to transfer property at death. Similar to wills, where beneficiaries receive assets of the decedent after death, will substitutes also differ from wills due to title being transferred before death, allowing the avoidance of probate proceedings. Along with this difference, it is also important to note that, while wills are governed under probate laws, will substitutes are governed under the laws of contracts, allowing for the avoidance of many rules specific to the passage of probate property. Will substitutes can provide greater flexibility but, at the same time, be more limiting when trying to transfer assets at death. Common examples of will substitutes include transfer of death accounts, life insurance, pension accounts, joint accounts, revocable trusts. While there are many things that can be discussed with will substitutes, including their advantages and disadvantages in terms of taxation, the thing this post will focus on are the beneficiary designations, and the advantages and disadvantages over traditional wills.
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| Basics of Estate Planning: What is Simultaneous Death? 
Everyone has heard the about how the entire Presidential line of succession is not allowed in the same room at the same time due to the risk of them all perishing at once. A similar issue, called simultaneous death, is a concern in estate planning. Simultaneous death is a particular concern for husbands and wives, as they are more likely to designate their spouse as beneficiaries, and more likely to spend significant time together. But what exactly is simultaneous death? While on its face it may seem obvious, that simultaneous death would be the death of two or more people that occurs at the same time, there is actually slightly more to it. This is because individual state laws have extended the definition of "simultaneous" beyond what you would find in the dictionary.
More in the February 2015 Newsletter
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Estate of the Month:
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| Tom Clancy with his WWII Tank |
Growing up during the tail end of the Cold War, one of my favorite authors at the time was Tom Clancy. Clancy was the author of such techno-thriller books as Patriot Games and The Hunt for Red October. Unfortunately, I think law school ruined his writing for me as I never did read many of his more recent endeavors. Regardless, his estate has become a clear and present danger of what not to do.
Clancy passed away on October 1, 2013 at age 66. After a lifetime filled with 17 bestsellers, more than 100 million copies in print, and numerous movie and video game spinoffs of his works, Mr. Clancy was able to amass a considerable estate. His will, dated June 11, 2007, was filed with the State of Maryland on October 10, 2013. In addition to his will, Clancy had executed two codicils on September 18, 2007 and July 25, 2013 that amended his will. Clancy's will named Mr. J.W. Thompson as personal representative. Despite being entered into probate over 15 months ago, the estate is still open, challenges continue to be brought, and memoranda have been filed as recently as the 10th of February. has been a sad couple of months for the comedy world.
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Circular 230 Disclosure: Pursuant to recently-enacted U.S. Treasury Department Regulations, we are now required to advise you that, unless otherwise expressly indicated, any federal tax advice contained in this communication, including attachments and enclosures, is not intended or
written to be used, and may not be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters
addressed herein. |
| Copyright � 2015 Law Office of Christopher M. Guest, PLLC |
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This newsletter was prepared by the Law Office of Christopher Guest, PLLC as a service to clients and friends of the firm. It is not intended as a source of specific legal advice. This Newsletter may be considered attorney advertising under the rules in some states. Prior results described in this newsletter cannot and do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter that the firm or any lawyer may be retained to handle. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case and circumstance.
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