Blog & Resources

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: My mother has Alzheimer’s, so we have sold her house and moved her into my house where my wife and I care for her. My brother is emotionally supportive, but he lives in California so he does not help out with her day-to-day care or decisions dealing with her health or assets. Though she is cooperative, the Alzheimer’s makes caring for her a near full-time job and we have spent a great deal of money on alterations to the house. Can I be reimbursed from her estate for these expenses?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: Though always independent, I recently have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and had to move into my daughter’s Delaware County house. I can’t do much for myself anymore and have to rely on my daughter. She is spending a great deal of her time caring for me and she has had to pay for several things out of her own pocket. I want to treat my children equally, but my two sons are very busy and are not able to help, so the work falls all on my daughter. I feel that I need to repay her for all this work at my death, what can I do?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: I want to give my daughter some money as a gift, but not tell my other children. I am worried that, at my death, the other children will find out and claim the gift was a loan and try to make her return the money. How can I reduce the chance of a fight?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: My caregiver has been with me for over two years and is a saint. I want to give her a gift in my will, but I am worried my children will think that this was her idea and try to stop the gift. What do you suggest?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: My father has been diagnosed with the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. He is having some memory issues, but is still doing very well on his own with one exception. My brother has always been the black sheep of the family. He has never held a steady job. He recently declared bankruptcy and has been pressuring my father to give him money and to change his will to give my brother more money. My father and my deceased mother’s wills have always divided their estate equally between the four children. My father has told me that he does not want to change his will, but that he is worried that as the Alzheimer’s progresses, he may give into the pressure my brother is putting on him. How do I protect my father from my brother’s undue influence?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: Last year, my mother died in Chester County and named me as beneficiary of her life insurance. As my children were the contingent beneficiaries, I decided to disclaim the inheritance, so the insurance money passed to my children. I was recently in a car accident. If I am sued, can they claim that life insurance money?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: My friend who lives in Philadelphia asked me to pay off his bills from his checking account if he passes away. Am I able to use that as proof or do I need something signed saying so?

From our “Ask a Question” mailbag: I want to loan my son some money at a low rate, but I do not want to create a fight between him and my other children at my death. What do you suggest?

Interfamily loans can become the source of much conflict between the children of a deceased parent. I find the best way to defuse the situation is to document everything very clearly, to keep the family informed about the loan, and to address the loan in your will.

Documenting the loan can be very straightforward and the loan terms can be written out on one or two pages.

At Klenk Law, we are often asked to incorporate our clients’ religious principles into their estate plans. Recently, we have noticed a significant increase of inquiries regarding Sharia Compliant Wills, which is an excellent topic for discussion.

Source of Principles

The four sources for the principles that guide Sharia Compliant Wills are:

the Qur’an,
Sunnah,
Ijma, and
the Qiyas.

At the end of October, the IRS announced the 2016 estate and gift tax lifetime exemption and annual gift tax exclusion. These amounts are tied to inflation, which has been minimal due to a number of factors—especially the lack of a federal interest rate hike during the first three quarters of 2015.

The estate and gift tax lifetime exemption rose from $5.43 million in 2015 to $5.45 million in 2016. This means married couples can pass on $10.9 million free from federal estate tax. The annual gift exclusion did not increase, and will remain at $14,000 for 2016.