Even love drunk celebrities that jump on Oprah’s couch get divorced. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes who were married for more than 5 years are no longer Hollywood’s picture perfect couple. The painful truth is that divorce in America is an epidemic with one in two marriages doomed to fail.

Estate planning becomes critical during such a major change in one’s life. It is paramount to contact your estate planning attorney so that you can update your Will and all necessary documents to reflect your new marital status. Not doing so is just risky business.

When you married, you probably left a large portion of your estate to your spouse by designating him or her as the primary beneficiary of your Will. You might want to rethink your asset distribution and appoint a new personal representative to administer your estate. Your attorney can redraft your entire Will or prepare a specialized addendum called a “codicil” to reflect these changes.

You may also want to update supplementary documents concerning incapacity such as the Durable Power of Attorney form and the Designation of Health Care Surrogate form. After divorce, the last person you probably want making financial and health care decisions on your behalf is your ex-spouse.

To avoid heading up the creek, you should also thoroughly review any existing Revocable Living Trusts. Most people prefer to remove the name of their ex-spouse as Trustee or beneficiary of the trust. When it comes to amending the terms of a trust, certain tax advantages could be lost so it’s important to consult your attorney as soon as possible.

With respect to life insurance, you will most likely prefer to re-designate the beneficiary of your policy. However, keep in mind that if such a step is taken prior to the final entry of a Divorce Decree, any accumulated cash value may be deemed a marital asset and thus become subject to equitable distribution in a divorce settlement.

The dissolution of marriage is a difficult and painful process; however, in South Florida, modifying your estate plan doesn’t have to be a mission impossible. With the help of your qualified South Florida estate planning attorney, all contingencies will be accounted for to ensure the protection of your assets and proper allocation to your intended beneficiaries.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

In the words of Penn State’s late football coach Joe Paterno:

“Success without honor is an unseasoned dish; it will satisfy your hunger, but it won’t taste good.”

Paterno’s family have discovered yet another unsavory situation. Their unsuccessful attempt at sealing his will from public view has left them with a bitter aftertaste. They have finally realized that a will, regardless of celebrity status, is a document that must be submitted for probate and consequently, becomes public record.

If they wanted to satisfy their palate for privacy, the assets should have been transferred to a living trust or revocable trust. In South Florida, trust formation eliminates the need for probate and does not become public record. The decedent’s net worth and the identity of beneficiaries remain protected from snooping, unwelcome eyes.

However, transferring assets into a trust does not necessary mean you should not have a will in place. What if you unintentionally left out an asset? Do you have minor children? Drafting a proper will ensures all your assets are accounted for and that a guardian is appointed to care for your children in the event you pass away.

Now that Joe’s 1997 will and 2012 codicil are available for our entertainment, apparently there is nothing particularly special or scandalous surrounding its contents.

But what does raise a brow or two is why his family thought they could hide the document from Nittany Lions or the rest of the world.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

Well… at least the team’s multi-billionaire owner is.

Miami Heat fans, when not preoccupied with Kevin Durant or silenced by LeBron James’ basket moves, are well acquainted with Micky Arison, probably the richest man in Florida.

Also the CEO of Carnival Cruises, Micky is no stranger to the concept of estate planning. Did you know that his father, Ted Arison, co-founder of the Cruise Lines, went so far as to renounce his citizenship in order to avoid paying estate taxes?

In 2003, the Arison family sold more than $100 million of Carnival stock in order to reduce their controlling stake in the company and diversify their investments as part of an estate and tax planning strategy.

Micky has even formed the Micky and Madeleine Arison Family Charitable Trust with a philanthropic commitment to the University of Miami as well as Miami’s City Ballet, Children’s Museum, Art Museum, and the American Red Cross.

Arison has been described as a very competitive person who hates the prospect of losing. Yet, the business of owning a professional sports team can cause serious financial difficulties for surviving family members after the death of its owner. In 2009, Micky probably stayed afloat with the news surrounding death of Bill Davidson, majority owner of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons, whom the Miami Heat just happened to defeat in the 2006 NBA championship.

Davidson’s spouse Karen, inherited the team through a complex series of trusts along with her two adult children. She contemplated selling the team to a private equity investor, which was consummated last year. It was speculated that although the estate was worth billions, she would not owe any estate tax. However, after her death, her children would be left to pay Uncle Sam’s hefty tax bill.

It would not be surprising if Micky has already engaged in smart business succession planning by accounting for the Miami Heat in his estate plan in order to save his family from the bullets of heavy taxation.

However, the core of estate planning is in actuality, not about how much money you make. It’s really about protecting your loved ones, regardless of your income level or age.

We already know what the man behind the Miami Heat is doing to solidify his estate plan.

The question now remains… what are “you” doing about yours?

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

Wisconsin’s Gov. Walker is the nation’s first governor to survive a recall election despite the roars of union workers protesting at the Capitol. Voters apparently endorsed his business like approach requiring public employees to contribute more to their health insurance and pension benefits, like in the private sector. His plan erased a billion dollar budget deficit, reduced unemployment rate to below 7 percent, and prevented layoffs of policemen, firefighters, and teachers.

With our lackluster economy, investment uncertainty, and decreasing home values, the important question now becomes what is your strategy for protecting your family against financial distress and fragmented relationships? With a properly constructed estate plan, you can save your family tens of thousands of dollars, protect them from creditor claims, and undue taxes. However, this is not an easy task. Due to these hard times, there has been an increase in contested estates and heated disputes among heirs and beneficiaries.

There are some steps you can take to avoid family conflict and unnecessary probate litigation.

The pinnacle of a solid estate plan is to hire a good South Florida estate planning attorney. It’s important to select one that is highly qualified with the knowledge of Florida state laws and experience in this complex area of law.

Selecting the right personal representative to administer your estate and trustees to manage your trusts requires a well thought out plan. If you anticipate unavoidable family friction, it might be best to appoint a professional fiduciary such as a bank to manage your affairs.

Most people don’t think to sit down with family members to discuss their intentions and how they wish to bequeath their assets. However, clear and effective communication can help avoid unpleasant family disputes once you are gone. In addition, updating and confirming your estate plan over time will minimize challenges to your estate. Finally, always make sure your assets are clearly titled to avoid any confusion in the future.

If the family divide still cannot be mended, you can always try taking Walker’s advice and offer them some brats and beer.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

It’s not surprising that celebrity marriages melt faster than a stick of butter in a hot frying pan. So, it came as no shock after Katy Perry and Russell Brand recently called it quits. During their short marriage she was filming her movie “Part Of Me” where a camera crew accompanied her on world tours and filmed private moments with Russell.

Her ex-husband is now asking her to edit his scenes out but his requests have fallen on deaf ears. Apparently the footage reveals a not so pleasant Russell that could tarnish his public image. Maybe this is a form of retaliation on Katy’s part or maybe a healing process in letting the whole world see the real Mr. Brand.

However, the best remedial measures she can take after a painful divorce is to protect her assets. One commonly overlooked area of estate planning after a considerable life change such as a divorce, is updating one’s beneficiary designation forms. If Katy has designated Russell as the beneficiary of any life insurance policies she may have taken out or under any saving and investment plans, she should remove him. Otherwise, in the event she turn from “Hot” to permanently “Cold” with no more “Last Friday Night” excursions to sing about, the funds will be transferred to Russell’s estate. Now, that could really put a dent to an already broken heart.

It’s important to talk to your South Florida estate planning attorney on how to modify your estate plan so that your “intended” beneficiaries are accounted for so that you do not mistakenly disinherit them.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

Recently, Facebook has been receiving more attention than usual. There was a lot of reaction following the company’s IPO, its stock going public, and of course Mark Zuckerberg’s surprise marriage to Priscilla Chan.

So what does Facebook have to do with South Florida Estate Planning? More than you think.

Many of us are avid users of Facebook and we realize that our daily lives revolve around social media and profiles including Twitter, Flickr, and LinkedIn. However, most of us fail to consider what will happen to the online content and how our identities will be handled after we die. There’s more to it than that.

The Internet has become our new reality. Every day we are glued to our computer screens checking our multiple email accounts and paying our bills online. Business transactions have virtually gone paperless. We rely on our digital assets such as Netflix, Pandora, iTunes and anything else that requires a monthly fee.

What’s most interesting is that the U.S. government strongly suggests making a social media will. Like with a traditional will, an online personal representative will need to be appointed to close all your email addresses and social media profiles such as Facebook. You may decide to keep your social media profiles for friends and family as a memorial profile after you die.

Your digital assets must be accounted for in order to ensure proper distribution upon death. Because almost everything is done online, don’t forget to consider any online data you may be in possession of such as online bank accounts, investment accounts, bill paying accounts, and e-books. These relevant accounts along with username and passwords should be stored in your estate planning documents.

We can’t take for granted what’s consistently in front of our eyes. Our digital assets are just as important as any other assets owned and should be part of your estate plan.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?