“Dying without a will basically means that you give up having control over who gets your property after your death and who will be the guardian of your minor children.”
Many celebrities die without wills. This past year saw a host of celebrity estate snafus. It’s as if they were sending a message from beyond that they didn’t care about how much turmoil and family fights would take place over their money and assets. Some of these battles go on for decades. However, as reported in Press Republican’s article “The Law and You: Important to make a will,” even if you think you don’t have enough property to make it necessary to have a will, you’re wrong. It’s not just wealthy or famous people who need wills.
Do you really want other people making those decisions on your behalf? Would you want the laws of your state making these decisions? Your family will do better, if you have a will and an estate plan.
For example, in California, if you don’t have a will or trust, your surviving spouse will inherit half of the estate and your child will inherit the other half. If you have more than one child, your spouse will inherit only 1/3 of the estate and the remainder of the estate will be divided equally among your children whether they are minors or adults.
If you have a spouse but no children, your spouse will inherit everything. If you have children and no spouse, then the children get everything, divided equally.
If you have no spouse, no children and living parents, then your parents will inherit everything you own.
If your parents are not alive, your siblings will get it all.
Adopted children are treated by the courts the same as biological children, when there is no will. Stepchildren and foster children do not inherit, unless they are specifically named in the will.
If you have been in a long-term relationship with someone and never married, even if they qualify for health care benefits from your employer under the “domestic partner” provision, they are not considered a spouse when it comes to inheritance. At the same time, if you are not legally married and your partner dies, you have no legal right to inherit from your partner’s estate. No matter how long you have been together, how many children you have together, if you are not legally married, you have no inheritance rights.
Check your state’s laws for the rights of “common law marriages;” California does not recognize these as a legal union. In very limited cases, New York State has been known to recognize common law marriages from other states where they are legal, but that is the exception and not the rule. There are limits here as well: both parties will have to agree to be married, must represent to others that they are married and may not be married to anyone else.
If you want someone who is not your legal spouse to receive your assets, you need to meet with an estate planning attorney and have a will drawn up that meets the requirements of the laws of your state. An estate planning attorney will be able to explain how your state laws work and what provisions are and are not acceptable in your estate.
An estate planning attorney will also help you consider other issues. Do you want to leave anything to a charity that matters to you? Do you want anyone else besides your children to receive something after you pass? Is there anyone who needs a trust, because they are unable to manage their finances, or you are concerned about their marriage ending in divorce? Making these decisions in a properly prepared will, can protect your family and lessen the chances of your wishes being challenged.
Reference: Press Republican (Dec. 18, 2018) “The Law and You: Important to make a will”
“在去世時沒有遺囑基本上等於你放棄了在你去世後由誰獲得你的財產以及誰將成為你未成年子女的監護人的控制權。”
許多名人於去世時沒有遺囑。在過去一年中,我們看到許多名人的資產糾紛。就好像他們並不關心資產會引起多少動盪和家庭爭鬥的信息。其中一些紛爭持續了數十年。然而,正如Carroll County Times的文章 “Legal Matters: If predeceased by an heir in a valid will, what happens with that inheritance?” 所述,即使你認為自己並不富有所以沒有立遺囑的必要,那你錯了。不是只有富有的人或名人才需要遺囑。
你真的希望由其他人代表你做出這些決定嗎?你想要你所在的州的法律作出這些決定嗎?如果您有遺囑和資產計劃,您的家人會更好。
例如,在加州,如果您沒有遺囑或信託,您的在世配偶將繼承遺產的一半,您的子女將繼承另一半遺產。如果您有一個以上的子女,您的配偶將僅繼承遺產的三分之一,而遺產的剩餘部分將平均分給您的子女,無論他們是未成年還是已成年。
如果你有配偶但沒有子女,你的配偶將繼承一切。如果你有子女而沒有配偶,你的子女將平分你的一切。
如果你沒有配偶,沒有子女,那麼你的父母將繼承你的一切。
如果你的父母已去世,你的兄弟姐妹將會得到所有。
在沒有遺囑的情況下,收養的子女跟親生子女在法律上受到一樣待遇。繼子女和寄養孩子不會繼承,除非在遺囑中說明。
如果您與某人建立了長久關係但並從未結婚,即使他們根據“家庭伴侶”條款他們有資格從您的雇主那裡獲得醫療保健福利,但在繼承方面,他們並不被視為配偶。同時,如果您們沒有合法結婚而您的伴侶去世了,您沒有合法權利繼承您伴侶的遺產。不論你們在一起有多久,你們有多少子女,如果你們沒有合法結婚,你就沒有繼承權。
查看您所在州的法律是否適用“普通法婚姻”。加州不承認這些是合法結合。在非常有限的情況下,眾所周知,紐約州承認來自其他州的普通法婚姻,但這是例外,而不是規則。這裡也有限制:雙方必須同意將來會結婚,必須向他人表示他們已婚並且不得與其他人結婚。
如果您希望不是您的合法配偶得到您的遺產,您需要與資產規劃律師會面,並製定符合您所在州法律要求的遺囑。資產規劃律師可以向您解釋州法律是如何運作以及有哪些法律條文對您資產計劃是可接受及是哪些不可接受的。
資產規劃律師也會幫您考慮其他問題。例如你想把一些東西留給對你很重要的慈善機構嗎?你希望除了你子女以外的人在你去世後獲得什麼嗎?有沒有人需要信託,因為他們無法管理自己的財務,或者你擔心他們的婚姻最終離婚收場?在準備好的遺囑中做出這些決定,可以保護您的家人並減少您的意願受到質疑的機會。
參考: Press Republican (Dec. 18, 2018) “The Law and You: Important to make a will”