Estate Planning Documents for College Age Children

Has your child received their college acceptance letter? Here is the first thing that you should do once they know where they are going to school. Make Sure They Are Safe and Protected Did you know that if they face a serious injury or illness and they are over the age of 18, then you may have significant trouble making health care decisions on their behalf while they are away at school? Every child over 18 should have certain key estate planning documents in place in case of illness, accident or emergency. Even if your child is still in high school they are legally an adult at the age of 18, so it’s important to sit down with them before they reach this age and discuss next steps. What Estate Planning Documents Does Your Child Need? At minimum, every child needs a health care proxy, power of attorney, and a

Is Your Trust Safe in a Divorce? The Implications of Jones v. Jones for Estate Planning in Massachusetts

An important recent case in Massachusetts has planning implications for married couples, especially when there is inherited property. The divorce of Jones v. Jones was filed in 2019. Inherited property and gifted property was a significant issue in the divorce. The wife’s mother had set up an irrevocable trust for the benefit of her daughter and had supported the couple financially throughout the marriage. The judge in the case deemed that the trust should be treated as marital property. The wife disagreed on the grounds that the interest in the trust was too speculative to be defined as such. In September 2023, the Massachusetts Appeals Court decided that the trust could be considered marital property. The wife argued that she had not received any distributions from the trust and she would not receive the trust assets in full until her mother’s death. Yet the appeals court found that the existence

Preparing for the Reduction in the Estate Tax Exemption

Posted by Robert L. Arone In late May of this year, the U.S. Treasury released a publication detailing a number of the proposed tax code changes that the Biden administration would like to usher through Congress in an ambitious effort to modernize the US tax system to meet its citizens’ needs. While reasonable minds may differ strongly on the best way to stimulate the US economy and create wealth and security for the American people, one thing is certain: the need for individuals to engage in careful estate and tax planning to avoid paying more tax than necessary is not going away. The IRS publication,[1] sometimes referred to as the Green Book, outlines a number of key proposals that—if ultimately passed—have the potential to significantly shake up the estate planning world as we know it today by sidelining a number of tried and true estate planning strategies while potentially increasing the

Helping Clients with Anticipated Inheritances

Posted by Robert L. Arone When we think of estate planning, we often think about preparing our clients’ accounts and property to go to their loved ones in a tax-efficient way, protected from probate, disgruntled heirs, beneficiaries’ creditors, divorcing spouses, bankruptcy, and the poor spending habits of beneficiaries. We rarely consider helping our clients prepare for receiving an inheritance. Believe it or not, there are several essential things a client must consider if they anticipate receiving an inheritance. Helping them understand these issues brings value to your professional relationship, ensuring that they return for your advice and counsel for years to come. Understanding the Nature of the Property to Be Inherited The first way to help a client properly prepare to receive an inheritance is to discover what exactly they will be inheriting. Is it real estate, a 401(k), or an individual retirement account (IRA)? Perhaps it is publicly traded

Helping Clients Responsibly Leave Wealth to Grandchildren

Posted by Robert L. Arone Estate planning attorneys frequently hear from their clients, “I’d like to leave something to my grandchildren. What’s the best way to do that?” Naturally, grandparents love their grandchildren and want them to succeed in life. And when grandparents are in the twilight of their lives, their hearts often turn to the younger generation with a desire to give them whatever advantages they can, especially if they were unable to give their own children those same advantages when their children were younger. For most grandparents, the best way to provide for their grandchildren is to leave their accounts and property to the grandchildren’s parents to ensure the financial stability of that family unit, thereby indirectly benefiting the grandchildren. In fact, default inheritance laws in nearly every state reflect this common desire to provide first for children and then for the grandchildren in the event that an

Estate Planning Articles

Estate Planning Documents for College Age Children

Is Your Trust Safe in a Divorce? The Implications of Jones v. Jones for Estate Planning in Massachusetts

Preparing for the Reduction in the Estate Tax Exemption

Helping Clients with Anticipated Inheritances

Helping Clients Responsibly Leave Wealth to Grandchildren

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© 2025 by Orsi Arone Rothenberg Turner, LLP. All rights reserved.

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Estate Planning Articles

Estate Planning Documents for College Age Children

Is Your Trust Safe in a Divorce? The Implications of Jones v. Jones for Estate Planning in Massachusetts

Preparing for the Reduction in the Estate Tax Exemption

Helping Clients with Anticipated Inheritances

Helping Clients Responsibly Leave Wealth to Grandchildren

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How Can We Help?

© 2025 by Orsi Arone Rothenberg Turner, LLP. All rights reserved.

Attorney Marketing by Bardorf Legal Marketing

Have A Question?