Douglas A. Turner, P.C.

Many people try to avoid Colorado probate because of the perceived expense. To avoid a Colorado probate proceeding upon death, Colorado real and personal property must pass to the heirs by other means. In the case of real estate, Colorado quitclaim deeds (note: not Colorado quit claim deeds, as erroneously written at times) are often used. In most cases, however, the better alternative is a Colorado beneficiary deed.

According to Wikipedia, Bill Gates is now worth about 56 Billion dollars. Query: If Bill Gates had placed his Microsoft stock in an asset protection trust when the company began, how much would he have saved in estate taxes? Answer: Roughly 20 billion dollars.

Welcome to 2008! To start the New Year off right, here are ten important Colorado probate and estate planning tips for the New Year. The first Colorado probate and estate planning tip is a Will. If you don’t have a Will, get one. In particular, married couples with children from prior relationships should always have a Will. Otherwise, the couple may be very surprised at who gets the money at death.
Read more Colorado Probate & Estate Planning Tips»

Now, I know the title does not sound exciting, but there is much money at stake. How much? Millions, and some of it may belong to you if you understand the two-year rule and the one-year rule regarding life insurance death benefits.

Anna Nicole Smith’s will also contains something called a no contest clause. In article VI, Anna Nicole Smith disinherits any heir that disputes the terms of the will in any way, shape or form. It is a very broad clause. It is another “standard” clause found in many wills. It is a clause we do not include without giving it serious thought. The reason why can be seen in the Anna Nicole Smith saga.

For those of you who have been on a desert island for the last few weeks, the lovely Anna Nicole Smith has passed before her time in a Florida hotel room, as a resident of the Bahamas with a will drafted in California and a lawyer as her boyfriend and confidant. The will executed in 2001 specifically provides for her son who committed suicide. The will makes no mention of her daughter who was born after the will was executed. The multimillion-dollar question is whether Anna Nicole Smith intentionally did not provide for that daughter. No law school professor could have conjured up a better essay question for a final exam in estate planning 101.

More and more individuals are avoiding probate by using revocable trusts, payable on death designations and joint tenancy. The end result is that when a person dies, their money quickly disappears leaving the creditors of the deceased with nothing but an account due and owing. However, there are ways to recover from those who received [...]

The general rule is that liability for a debt rests with the person who incurred the debt. However, like most general rules, there are many exceptions. One of those exceptions is something called the family purpose doctrine.

The family purpose doctrine states that the expenses of the family and the education of the children are chargeable upon the property of both husband and wife, or either of them, and in relation thereto they may be sued jointly or separately. In simple English, this means that both husband and wife are responsible for the grocery bill regardless of who went to the store.

With the current federal estate tax exemption at two million dollars, fewer individuals are faced with federal estate taxes. However, for those with more than two million dollars in assets and life insurance, there are some simple and inexpensive techniques to greatly reduce if not eliminate any potential federal estate taxes.

Well, times have changed since I first wrote about the disposition of dead bodies. It used to be that an individual could not control what happened to his or her body after death. Well, that has changed.
Colorado’s Disposition of Last Remains Act
Several years ago, Colorado enacted the Disposition of Last Remains Act. In Colorado, [...]