Edmond Oklahoma Estate Planning Blog

You probably already know by now that wills and trusts have different roles to play, and while every situation is different, you may find it helpful to incorporate each into your estate plan in Oklahoma. Even if you believe that a trust may be potentially beneficial in your particular circumstances, you may be reluctant to start one because of the cost involved. If that is the case, it may surprise you to know that, according to Bankrate, the fees to engage a professional trustee for your estate are lower than the fees paid to a professional executor of a will. 

In either case, fees will vary depending on the size and complexity of your estate, as well as where you live. Generally speaking, however, fees paid to a trustee whom you hire to manage your estate amount to only about 1 percent of the total assets in the trust. 

It is common for people to die with some debts still outstanding. However, just because someone in Oklahoma dies, it does not mean that the debts that person incurred in life die as well. Since those debts can come back to haunt the estate of the deceased, the executor of the estate should be proactive in alerting creditors that their debtor has passed.

According to Forbes, an executor might need to publicly advertise the existence of the estate. By placing an advertisement in a newspaper or using whatever means are permitted, an executor is making it easier for creditors to learn about the estate and that they can approach the executor for the outstanding money. If necessary, the creditors may contest for the assets of the estate in court or negotiate for a settlement.

A common misconception that many in Edmond may have regarding estate administration is that it is a singular event. While that may be true in certain cases, many times estate administration can be a process that plays out over several years (even decades). This is especially true in the case of those who own properties that are put out for public consumption. Executors and personal representatives in these cases are tasked with ensuring that any intellectual or artistic properties belonging to an estate are not used without authorization (or if they are, that the estate is duly and adequately compensated for their use). 

Oftentimes, people will use protected properties without even knowing that they need such authorization. Such appears to have been the case in the making of the film (which itself is a remake of a classic Italian film). The movies director admitted that the images he used in many of the film's dream sequences were inspired by the works of popular feminist artists. Two such images apparently came to close to resembling two actual works of art produced by a renowned Cuban-American artist. Representatives of her estate took note of this and sued the film's production company. The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount, and the images were removed from the film's theatrical version. 

If you are the parent of an Oklahoma special needs child, you undoubtedly do everything in your power to see to it that your child receives the care and services (s)he needs. But you also likewise worry about who will care for your child if (s)he outlives you and if the money will be there to provide that care once you are no longer around.

It may surprise you to learn that establishing a special needs trust for the benefit of your child could relieve both your worries. As FindLaw explains, a special needs trust names your child as trust beneficiary, lists the trust assets, designates you as trustee, plus your choice of successor trustee in the event of your incapacity or death, and specifies who you want to care for your disabled child once you can no longer do so yourself.