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Part of my job as a lawyer is answering questions – in fact, a lot of my job is answering questions. As a result, some questions crop up rather frequently. Here are a few frequently asked questions from estate planning clients that you may have wondered about...

I wrote a blog article some time ago explaining the difference between an executor and a trustee and the duties of each position. (If you want to re-read it, you can find it here: https://www.kawaylaw.com/news/executor-and-trustee/) For those who want to know but...

People talk about intellectual property rights all the time, but what exactly are intellectual property rights? More specifically, what rights do you have to your written materials, i.e. your books, manuals, blog articles, website content etc.? “Intellectual property”...

All right, you have successfully assigned your copyright(s) to your trust (if you haven’t done this yet, please see my previous article on putting a copyright into your trust). Now you want to update your registration with the Copyright Office to show that the...

A very common question I hear when people sign their trust is, “Do I need to get a tax ID for my trust?” In most cases the answer is no. Let me explain why. In estate planning, the most common kind of trust is the revocable grantor trust (there are a few other names...

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season. In keeping with tradition, this final blog post of the year highlights the blog articles that got the most attention this past year. I hope you enjoy this trip down Memory Lane! Top blog posts for 2022 How Do I Put a...

I have been contacted on multiple occasions by prospective clients who learned after a loved one’s death that they would inherit nothing from the deceased person (decedent). This can be a very painful discovery, particularly if the decedent and the prospect were...

My sister inspired this blog article when she noticed a trend in the knitting world.  She saw several social media posts where knitters saw a design they liked, reverse-engineered it, and then gave away the pattern or offered it for sale. She asked me about the...

Estate Administration Basics: What To Do After a Loved One Dies Losing a loved one is one of the most emotional times a person can go through. Dealing with their material possessions (i.e. the estate) shouldn’t be an additional burden, but it frequently is. Most...