A handwritten note, a family business, a trust, and a disputed estate all demonstrate how quickly estate planning can become complicated when the right protections are not in place.

Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers examine two court cases that highlight the importance of proper estate planning, trust funding, beneficiary designations, and business succession planning. They also explain a strategy involving IRAs and testamentary trusts that may help certain families address nursing home exposure, estate taxes, and asset protection.

They cover:

• What happens when a handwritten note appears to contradict an existing will
• How undue influence can create problems when family relationships and inheritances collide
• Why business owners should consider succession planning before a family dispute occurs
• The difference between probate assets and assets that pass through a trust
• How trusts and beneficiary designations can affect creditor protection
• Why properly funding a trust is just as important as creating one
• How inherited IRAs can create tax and estate planning complications
• When naming an estate as an IRA beneficiary may be considered alongside a testamentary trust
• How a trustee can handle the sale of a home after the trust creator dies

The key takeaway: estate planning is about more than deciding who inherits your property. How assets are titled, where they pass at death, how beneficiary forms are completed, and whether trusts are properly funded can affect probate, taxes, creditor exposure, and ultimately how much control and protection your family has after you are gone.

A direct inheritance can create major problems for someone receiving asset based government benefits, but the right trust language can help protect those benefits and preserve family assets.

In this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers discuss an Alaska trust dispute involving capacity, undue influence, and a child being removed from a revocable trust. They also explain the difference between third party and self settled special needs trusts, why a direct inheritance can jeopardize SSI benefits, and how proper planning can help families provide for a special needs beneficiary. Plus, Todd answers listener questions about paying for at home care, wrapping up an irrevocable trust after death, and using pooled trusts as a last minute Medicaid planning tool.

Real estate can create major problems inside an estate plan when beneficiaries do not agree on whether to keep, sell, or divide a family property.

In this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers discuss a New Hampshire case involving family real estate, trust assets, and a trustee who was found to have breached his fiduciary duty. Todd explains how properly drafted trust language can give beneficiaries equal options, force a sale when needed, protect property from divorce, and help keep assets in the bloodline. They also examine a Connecticut case involving a person who died without a will, why it is critical to clearly define who is included or excluded from your estate plan, and how Cushing and Dolan’s trust language can help avoid disputes involving children, stepchildren, and beneficiaries born outside of marriage. Plus, Todd answers listener questions about irrevocable trusts, Medicaid eligibility, rental property sales, life insurance, and last minute nursing home planning.

Giving property to a family member may seem like a simple estate planning solution, but it can leave you without control of your home and expose the property to divorce, creditors, nursing home costs, and estate taxes.

In this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers examine a Texas court case involving a couple who transferred their home to the husband’s parents, continued living there, and later faced a complicated ownership dispute after divorce. They also discuss why estate plans and beneficiary designations should be reviewed during a divorce, how the caretaker child exception may protect a parent’s home from nursing home costs, and why retaining a life estate can preserve important tax benefits. Plus, Todd answers whether new assets can be added to an existing irrevocable trust and explains how married couples may protect a home and other assets when seeking last minute Medicaid eligibility.

n this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers continue their discussion of last-minute Medicaid eligibility and explain how families may still have options when nursing home care becomes urgent. They cover a Wisconsin caretaker agreement case, why poorly drafted personal care contracts can create major Medicaid problems, and why payments for caregiving services need to follow specific rules. Todd also breaks down a New Jersey case involving Medicaid liens, state liens, pooled trusts, and inherited assets, then answers listener questions about protecting a non-retirement annuity and updating an irrevocable trust after the death of a child without restarting the five-year look-back period.

A nursing home stay can create an urgent financial crisis, but Todd Lutsky explains why families should not assume they have to spend everything before Medicaid becomes an option.

In this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers introduce the new guide, Last Minute Medicaid Eligibility, and break down how different assets may be treated when someone needs nursing home care. They discuss why giving real estate to children can create major problems, how discounted home sales may be treated as partial gifts, and why rental property can sometimes be non-countable but still lienable. Todd also explains the difference between planning for married couples and single individuals, how the family home may be protected in certain Medicaid situations, and why waiting until capacity becomes questionable can create serious estate planning disputes.

A missing will, out of state property, nursing home paperwork, and an improperly signed document can all create costly legal problems for families. The good news is that many of these issues can be avoided with proper estate planning.

Todd and Susan Powers discuss two court cases that highlight the importance of planning ahead. They explain how intestate succession works when someone dies without a will, why out of state property can complicate probate, how arbitration agreements at nursing homes can affect your legal rights, and answer listener questions about irrevocable trusts, protecting a home for loved ones, and selling a home held in trust.

Trusts can play a major role in protecting assets, avoiding probate, and reducing estate taxes, but the details of how they are drafted and funded can determine whether the plan works.

Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers discuss how homestead protection applies when a home is owned by a trust, why avoiding probate can also help protect assets from creditor claims, and how irrevocable Medicaid trusts may help families protect assets from long-term care costs while maintaining important flexibility.

Trusts can play a major role in protecting assets, avoiding probate, and reducing estate taxes, but the details of how they are drafted and funded can determine whether the plan works.

Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers discuss how homestead protection applies when a home is owned by a trust, why avoiding probate can also help protect assets from creditor claims, and how irrevocable Medicaid trusts may help families protect assets from long-term care costs while maintaining important flexibility. They also explain how family limited partnerships and LLCs can be used to reduce estate taxes through valuation discounts, why those strategies must have a legitimate non-tax purpose, how Medicaid liens on a home can be handled after death, and why personal care contracts are important when a family member is being paid to provide care.

Estate plans can get complicated when real estate, trust language, and family expectations do not line up, especially when property is sold before beneficiaries receive what they were promised.

In this episode of The Legal Exchange, Todd Lutsky and Susan Powers discuss how real estate should be handled inside an estate plan, why the wording of a trust can determine whether beneficiaries receive a specific property or the proceeds from its sale, and how no-contest clauses may help reduce family conflict. They also explain the difference between general and limited powers of appointment, why those powers matter for estate tax planning, how arbitration clauses can affect trust disputes, and why irrevocable Medicaid trusts may help families protect certain assets from long-term care costs while maintaining important planning flexibility.