Blog: Estate Planning

  • Can I update my estate plan during my divorce?
    If you are a newly separated person and you and your spouse are preparing to get a divorce, you know that every aspect of your life may feel up in the air right now. It can be overwhelming to be faced with a seemingly unending list of decisions to make, yet you must work through them one by one. Your estate plan may feel like something you can address down the road, but the reality...
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  • What is the cy pres doctrine?
    One of the advantages of creating a charitable trust is that it allows you to continue to fund worthy causes in perpetuity. However, problems can arise specifically because of the enduring nature of a trust. Due to changes in circumstances over time, it may become impossible, impractical or even illegal to fulfill your stated intentions through your charitable trust. According to National Paralegal College, the court may apply the cy pres doctrine in a situation...
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  • Benefits of charitable remainder trusts
    For people who are philanthropically minded and able to make sizeable donations to charitable organizations, combining their donor activities with their estate planning can be wise and beneficial to both their intended charities and to themselves. A charitable remainder trust may provide the right vehicle for people in these situations but understanding how this type of trust works is important. As explained by Fidelity Investments, a charitable remainder trusts allows a person to put assets...
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  • Battle for control of Aretha Franklin’s estate continues
    No matter the size or scope of one’s estate in Haddonfield, the estate planning process can be quite complicated. It is for this very reason that estate planning experts recommend that those involved in it be as transparent as possible. Many experts might also say that this is wise to include would-be beneficiaries in it (as preparing people for what their roles and/or their interest in an estate might be prior to it being administered...
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  • Responsibilities of an executor
    Many people assume they will be named as the executor of a parent’s will, but that may not always happen. Wise adults do not simply identify a person to be a will executor based on familial relations. The job of an executor should be thought of as just that – a job – instead of a ceremonious title bestowed on someone. Understanding what an executor’s responsibilities are is important when determining who to name in...
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  • Is estate planning different for a blended family?
    No longer is it uncommon for a person to get married more than one time in their life. A remarriage may happen after the death of a first spouse or after a first marriage ends via divorce or an annulment. Regardless of how a previously married person finds themselves single again, they deserve the opportunity to move forward positively and create a life with a new spouse. While embracing the joys and opportunities that come...
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  • When is a will not enough?
    If you are the parent of a special needs New Jersey child, you likely spend a good deal of time taking care of him or her and making sure that (s)he receives the attention, education and support (s)he needs to make his or her life as comfortable and fulfilling as possible. What you may not have thought about, however, is that your estate plan needs to consist of more than simply your Last Will and...
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  • Does Medicaid cover assisted living?
    Residents of New Jersey who are getting older are likely aware that they need to start estate planning. However, many people believe that estate planning is merely making plans that are not going to be put into effect until after the individual’s death. However, where assisted living is concerned you may want to consider estate planning in a more immediate light. For instance, many people believe that they can use Medicare to help them pay...
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  • Why do millennials need estate plans?
    If you are one of the many residents in New Jersey who is part of the millennial generation, you may have heard your parents or grandparents talk about their wills or other elements of their estate plans. Like a lot of people who are still young, it is easy to think that estate plans are only necessary for people over a certain age. That, however, is far from the truth. Anyone can benefit from having...
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  • How to help your parents create an estate plan
    Life is strange in so many ways, but perhaps the oddest part is when the role of parent and child seems to flip. As your parents age, you may notice that you begin doing more for them, just as they used to do for you in the past. This is a natural progression and how things seem to work out. Taking on the caregiver role means it is up to you to help your parents...
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MEET ATTORNEY MICHAEL D. RITIGSTEIN

Michael Ritigstein is a Founding Partner of the firm concentrating his efforts in supporting the firm's litigation, corporate and estate matters. Mr. Ritigstein graduated from the University of Delaware in 1996 and Seton Hall University School of Law in 2000. In 2007 he received a Masters of Law in Taxation with a concentration in Estate Planning, from Temple University's Beasley School of Law.

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