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Being an adult comes with freedom and responsibility. You can now make important decisions on your own without consulting your parents or guardians. While this may feel incredibly liberating, it is not without some scary moments. As an adult, you are in charge of yourself. If you cannot act on your own behalf, there is no one who can automatically step in for you—not even your parents or guardians. You need to legally appoint decision-makers for your medical, legal, and financial matters. As you embark on adulthood, address these two important questions to ensure that you are protected if you need someone to step in for you.

How Will Your Medical Decisions Be Made?

Medical decisions tend to be among the most personal decisions a person makes. You can name an agent (in some states referred to as a patient advocate) to make these decisions in certain circumstances. You legally appoint this person through a tool called a medical power of attorney. You may need someone to step in for you if you are unable to make your own medical decisions or communicate those decisions. If you are under anesthesia, you may need someone to make a quick decision about your care, even if you otherwise would have the ability to make those decisions. In this instance, you cannot communicate your wishes and a decision needs to be made. Note that communication can include more than just speaking. For example, if you can blink once for yes and twice for no, you may be able to retain the right to make your own medical decisions because you can communicate your wishes. 

In addition to a medical power of attorney, it can be helpful to have two additional tools in the medical arena. First, an advance directive or living will (if legally recognized in your state) allows you to memorialize your wishes concerning your end-of-life care, such as whether you want to receive life support if you are in a vegetative state or have a terminal condition and no probable chance of recovery. In addition, having a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) authorization form on record with your medical professionals ensures that those you know and trust can access your medical information (for example, picking up test results or receiving an update on your condition). Although the HIPAA authorization form will give them access to information, these individuals will not have any decision-making authority unless you appoint them as your patient advocate in your medical power of attorney. Ensuring that everyone has access to this information may at least help alleviate or reduce the tensions between your chosen patient advocate and your loved ones.

Naming a patient advocate and at least two backups is important in case your first choice is unable or unwilling to make medical decisions for you. When selecting someone to undertake this important job, choose someone you trust. The person you pick will be making life-or-death decisions on your behalf. You need to choose someone who will abide by your wishes. The type of medical treatment you receive and your end-of-life wishes are personal to you, and others might not agree if they were in the same situation. It is very important that you let your chosen decision-makers know your wishes so that they can follow through with them. Lastly, due to the immediacy of some medical emergencies, choosing a patient advocate who can respond quickly is key. 

How Will Your Financial and Legal Affairs Be Managed When You Cannot Act?

As an adult, you are in charge of all decisions impacting your life. You are in charge of signing your own checks, entering into contracts, paying your bills, obtaining a job, and more. But if you are unable to transact business, whether it is because you are out of town or were in an accident and are now unable to communicate, someone may need to step in to ensure that various facets of your life continue uninterrupted. No one (not even your parents or guardians) can legally step in for you under any circumstances without your prior consent or without a court order. 

For these types of matters, you need to name an agent under a financial power of attorney. This trusted individual will be responsible for taking financial actions on your behalf, such as purchasing life insurance or withdrawing money from your bank account to cover your expenses. The scope of your agent’s authority is determined by the type of financial power of attorney that is prepared. The power can be as limited or as broad as you like. You can specify that your agent can act on your behalf only for certain matters (limited financial power of attorney) or can do almost anything you could do for yourself (general financial power of attorney). Another important consideration for a financial power of attorney is the specific time when your agent can act. You can have your agent act either immediately or, as permitted in some states, only after you have been deemed unable to manage your affairs. The process for making this determination can be outlined in the document. In addition, you will need to ensure that the financial power of attorney is durable so that your agent’s authority can continue even if you become unable to manage your own affairs (incapacitated).

Naming your agent under a financial power of attorney is a crucial step in protecting yourself and your future. As with a medical power of attorney, you want to ensure that you name someone as your agent along with backups. Because this person could be handling your money and signing documents on your behalf, it is important that you trust them. Depending on the circumstances and the availability of electronic signatures and virtual meetings, it may not be crucial that your chosen agent lives close to you. However, you will want to ensure that this person has the time to carry out the necessary tasks and duties.

We Are Here to Help

We understand that you are beginning a new phase in your life. You are coming into your own and are now tasked with making important decisions that could impact the rest of your life. Let us help by crafting a unique estate plan for you so you can rest assured that you are protected from whatever life may throw at you. Call us to schedule a consultation.

Why You Should Include Estate Planning in the Preparation

You have likely been preparing for weeks to get your new college student off to school. It is exhilarating, and your heart may be bursting at the seams. You are probably prouder than words can express but also afraid. How can you ensure your child is safe at their new home away from home? A new matching sheet set for their dorm room does not seem like enough, does it? So, what else can you do? While this is probably not on your to-do list, bringing your child to a local estate planning attorney can make all the difference.

Although your child has graduated from high school and reached adulthood, they may still want you by their side if they get sick. However, medical care decisions are legally theirs alone after they turn 18. If they were to become unconscious after a serious accident, you could not authorize medical care or make decisions about a treatment plan without first going to court. The court process would delay your ability to advocate for your child, and your appointment as guardian would ultimately be up to the judge.

We do not want to worry you unnecessarily, but the unfortunate reality is that a significant number of people between 18 and 25 years old wind up in hospitals every year, and their parents are often kept out of the loop when it comes to making critical decisions.

Therefore, most experienced estate planning practitioners recommend that everyone over the age of 18 have a basic estate plan that includes a will, a financial power of attorney, and medical directives that allow someone they trust to act on their behalf if they are unable to advocate for themselves or make medical decisions. While it is important that your child have the proper tools to ensure that their wishes are known and that trusted people will act on their behalf, they can choose whomever they want to fill these roles. These important roles do not have to be given to you.

Here are some things to take care of before you drop your child off at college:

• FERPA release. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is designed to protect college students’ privacy, but it can leave parents locked out in an emergency. A properly worded release, signed by your child, allows school officials to talk with you and release your child’s records to you.
• HIPAA authorization. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) seeks to protect patients’ privacy. Consider having your child sign an authorization form just in case so that doctors can talk to you about your child’s condition, care, and treatment.
• Durable financial power of attorney. This legal document allows you to take care of your child’s checking or savings accounts, bills, and other finances if your child is unable to—whether due to illness or location (for example, if the school is on the other side of the country or abroad).
• Medical power of attorney. Like the financial power of attorney, this document allows you to handle medical decisions for your child if your child is unable to do so.
• Advance directive or living will. This tool allows your child to state their wishes regarding end-of-life care. Although we hope this tool is unnecessary, it provides the medical decision-maker with additional information to help them make the right decisions on your child’s behalf.
• Will. At first glance, this may seem a little silly for the average, often broke, college kid. However, most young adults do have property or accounts they may want to plan for if something were to happen to them. For example, according to Dashlane, a company that offers secure, online password managers and digital wallets, a typical email account is tied to 130 or more online accounts, each potentially with their own usernames and passwords. Does your child have thoughts about who should manage their social media and email accounts? Do they want someone to receive valuable gaming accounts? Or do they want all their apps and accounts closed at their passing? 

We have been helping families attain peace of mind for years. Contact us today to protect your new college student and your family.

Congratulations! You are now legally an adult. Although you may not feel any different, from a legal standpoint, a great deal has changed.

When you were a minor (under age 18), your parents were your legal guardians responsible for making all your decisions. Now that you are an adult, their legal authority over you is limited, if not completely nonexistent. While this newfound freedom may sound exciting, consider the following:

• Who can access your medical information? As a legal adult, you are protected by the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). This means that medical professionals can disclose your private medical information only to those individuals you have authorized. If you want your parents to continue having access to this information, you will need to prepare a HIPAA authorization form appointing your parents, or anyone else you designate, as an authorized recipient.
• Whom do you want to make your medical decisions? When you were a minor, your parents generally had the authority to make medical decisions on your behalf. Now that you are an adult, you must formally give them this authority if you want them to continue being able to make medical decisions for you. However, as an adult, you can provide authority for them to make medical decisions for you only if you are unable to communicate or make medical decisions for yourself. You do not have to give your parents this authority. If there is someone else whom you want to make these decisions when you cannot, you are free to name those people instead. You can give them this authority by preparing a medical power of attorney. Not only can you name someone to act on your behalf (an agent), but you can also provide some general guidelines regarding your healthcare wishes.
• Who can handle your financial decisions? Now that you are an adult and your parents cannot take care of your legal or financial affairs, having a durable financial power of attorney in place may also be helpful. Until now, if you needed a parent to withdraw from a bank account or sign something on your behalf, there was no need for any additional steps because they were your legal guardian. However, to allow them to continue engaging in these same tasks, you must grant them the authority through a durable financial power of attorney. Just like with your medical decisions, you do not have to give your parents this authority. You are free to choose whomever you want.
• Who will wind up your affairs when you die? You just turned 18, not 98, but now is a good time to begin adopting some responsible habits and consider what will happen to your money and property when you pass away. You may think you have no assets, but you actually do. For example, in this digital age, each one of your social media accounts is considered an asset. What will happen to these accounts when you pass away? You likely also have tangible personal property (e.g., personal items, collectibles, jewelry), which might have more sentimental than financial value. A will or trust allows you to give what you have to whom you want in the manner you want, no matter the monetary value.

Now that you are an adult, it is time to start thinking and planning for the future like one. The first step is to meet with an experienced estate planning attorney. We are here to help you navigate this next chapter in your life and ensure you are protected.

In an estate plan, life insurance can be used as a source of immediate liquidity for beneficiaries by offering a tax-free, lump-sum payment upon the insured’s death. 

About half of Americans have a life insurance policy. The primary reason people purchase life insurance is to fund burial and other final expenses. However, a policy can help pay for much more, such as replacing lost income, paying off debts, equalizing inheritances, and funding a trust. 

Most life insurance policies provide flexibility in how the death benefit is paid, but policies do not actually pay out in every situation. If you have life insurance policy coverage, you need to understand the scenarios that can nullify it to ensure that your loved ones receive the financial protection the policy is intended to provide. 

How Life Insurance Works

The following key players are involved in a life insurance policy:

• The policyholder is the person who owns the policy and pays the premiums.
• The insured person is the person whose life is covered by the policy.
• The beneficiary is the person or entity designated to receive the death benefit when the insured person dies. The beneficiary can be an individual, a trust, a charity, or a combination of multiple beneficiaries.

The insured person may or may not be the same person as the policyholder.

Life insurance is a contract between the policyholder and an insurance company (the insurer) in which the insurer agrees to pay a death benefit to designated beneficiaries upon the insured’s death in exchange for regular premium payments.

Types of Policies

The three main types of life insurance are permanent life, term life, and employer-provided life insurance. 

• Term life insurance offers coverage for a specific period of time (term), with a death benefit paid out only if the insured dies within that time frame. 
• Permanent life insurance provides coverage for the insured’s entire lifetime and builds cash value over time, typically with higher premiums than term life insurance. There are two main types of permanent life insurance: whole life and universal life. 
• Employer-provided life insurance is a policy offered by an employer to their employees and paid for by the employer. The employer is the policyholder, and the employee is the insured. In many cases, the death benefit will be paid only if the insured is still working for the employer on the date of their death.

Payout Structures

Life insurance is usually paid out as a single lump sum, in installments over time, or through a life insurance annuity. The payment options available depend on the terms of the individual policy and the issuing insurance company. Some permanent life insurance policies also allow the policyholder to access cash value through withdrawals or loans while the insured is alive.

• Lump sum. The most common payout method is a lump-sum benefit paid to the beneficiary in a single payment. 
• Installments. The death benefit is distributed in regular payments over a set period.
• Life annuity. The death benefit is used to purchase an annuity, providing a stream of income to the beneficiary for a specified duration.

Life Insurance and Taxes

Beneficiaries generally receive a life insurance payout tax-free, although there are some cases when a death benefit is taxable. 

For example, if the payout is set up to be made in installments rather than in a lump sum, the principal is not taxed but any interest that accrues is taxable. The death benefit may also be subject to estate taxes if the total estate value exceeds the estate tax threshold and the insured person was also the policyholder. 

The Importance of Designating the Right Primary and Contingent Beneficiaries

One major benefit of having life insurance with a designated beneficiary as part of an estate plan is that the death proceeds bypass the court-supervised probate process. 

However, the death benefit can unintentionally go to the estate in the following situations: 

• The policyholder fails to designate beneficiaries.
• Named beneficiaries predecease the insured. 
• Beneficiaries cannot or will not accept the death benefit. 

This is why it is essential to name primary and backup beneficiaries and carefully consider whom you name for these roles.

Even if the policyholder names beneficiaries, the death proceeds may still become the subject of a probate court proceeding if the designated beneficiaries include minor children or adults who lack mental capacity. Because such individuals cannot legally own assets (property or accounts), a judge may have to appoint someone to manage the death benefit until the beneficiary becomes an adult or can manage it themselves. So even if a beneficiary is designated on a life insurance policy, it is important to consider who that beneficiary is and what the legal consequences of passing assets on to them would be.

What Life Insurance Can Be Used For

A life insurance beneficiary can use the money however they want. It is generally received tax-free, without restrictions on how it can be spent. Even special types of life insurance, such as final expense insurance that is meant to help pay for funeral and burial expenses, can generally be used for any purpose by beneficiaries. 

However, you also can set up your estate plan to guarantee that life insurance proceeds are used for a specific purpose. You can do so by naming a trust as the life insurance beneficiary and listing those specific instructions in the trust document.

Life insurance can also be used for the following purposes: 

• Pay off mortgages and other debts. Life insurance proceeds can be used to pay off the remaining balance on your mortgage, a credit card or personal loan, or other outstanding debt. 
• Fund a trust for your minor child. Minors are not eligible to receive life insurance funds directly. Instead, the money can be directed to a trust that benefits them and is overseen by a trustee. The trust can cover future needs like education costs and living expenses. 
• Fund a special needs trust. This type of trust is often established for the benefit of a disabled child or individual and funded through a life insurance policy. It can be structured so that the trust pays only for qualified expenses that do not impact eligibility for means-tested government benefits, such as Medicaid. 
• Fund a trust for your surviving spouse. Proceeds from a life insurance policy can also be placed in a trust that benefits your surviving spouse. The death benefit can replace your lost earnings and provide your spouse with financial support. 
• Equalize inheritances. You may wish to leave an equal value of money and property to each of your children. If you have property that cannot be easily divided, you can give it to one child and name your other child as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy of a substantially equal amount. 
• Ensure business continuity and succession plans. For business owners, a life insurance policy can fund a buy-sell agreement to pay for your share of the business at your death so there is a smooth ownership transition and business continuity.
• Cover estate taxes and settlement costs. Few estates are subject to the federal estate tax due to the current high exemption amounts. However, you might owe income taxes when you die, and some states have their own estate tax and an inheritance tax. There may also be probate fees and court costs. Life insurance proceeds can provide liquidity to pay these taxes and fees without having to sell or liquidate other accounts and property. 

In addition, life insurance proceeds can be designated for a certain purpose, including a spousal or child support obligation. Like death benefit proceeds that support a minor child or beneficiary with special needs, death benefits with a directed purpose are best handled through the establishment of a trust. 

Why Life Insurance May Not Pay Out

Life insurance is a contract that comes with terms and conditions. Some conditions, called exclusions, allow the insurer to deny payment to beneficiaries when the insured dies. The following are common life insurance policy exclusions: 

• Expired policy. Term life insurance will not pay out past the policy’s stated term. It may be possible to renew and extend the policy term, however. 
• Leaving a job. Employer or group life insurance is usually dependent on employment, so coverage ends when an employee leaves their job. 
• Risky activities. The insurance company may be able to deny a death benefit if the insured died while taking part in risky activities such as skydiving, rock climbing, and scuba diving that are specifically excluded in the policy contract. Certain jobs, such as logging, offshore oil work, and law enforcement, may also fall under this category. 
• Illegal activities. An insured’s death that occurs while they are engaging in an illegal activity or committing a crime is usually an excludable event. 
• Suicide. Life insurance generally covers death by suicide, but most policies have a “suicide clause” that exempts suicide occurring in the policy’s first two years or a different time frame as defined in the contract. 
• Murder. Murder, like suicide, is generally not excluded from life insurance coverage. However, if a beneficiary murders the insured, they will not receive the death benefit; it passes instead to contingent beneficiaries. 
• Substance abuse. A policy may exclude deaths resulting from drug or alcohol abuse, including overdose deaths. 
• Lying on the application. Life insurance companies decide whether to issue a policy and how much to charge based on the information the insured provides. Not providing accurate information constitutes a material misrepresentation—and insurance fraud—that can allow an insurer to rescind coverage. 

Importantly, an insurance company might provide coverage to individuals who engage in risky behaviors or have a high-risk health status (e.g., alcohol and drug use, a family health history of disease, or a diagnosed medical condition) but may charge them higher premiums. Lying about this information on an application could lead to a denial of benefits. 

Also, exclusions can change over time according to changing norms. For example, insurers historically excluded aviation accidents from coverage, but this is no longer common practice since private aircraft are now much safer. It is crucial to review the fine print of an insurance policy and understand its exclusions and key terms. 

An estate planning attorney can provide guidance about how to integrate life insurance into your plan in a way that meets your financial and legacy goals, whether those goals are to fund trusts with life insurance proceeds, cover estate and income taxes, fund a buy-sell agreement, or provide overall estate liquidity and financial peace of mind. Schedule a consultation to learn more.

Once you have been appointed the executor or personal representative of a deceased loved one’s probate estate, or when you step in as the successor trustee of the loved one’s trust, one of the first things you should do is to notify the post office of the death and ask them to forward the deceased person’s mail to your address. You will be required to provide documented proof that you have been authorized to manage your loved one’s mail—a death certificate is not enough. You will then need to complete a change-of-address request. According to the United States Postal Service website, you must do this in person.

It is important that you direct your loved one’s mail to your mailing address for a period of time because, as the executor, personal representative, or successor trustee, you are responsible for winding up your deceased loved one’s affairs. Your duties specifically include ensuring that necessary bills are paid and creating a list of everything your loved one owns to make sure it is passed on to the intended recipient. Unfortunately, along with important pieces of mail such as statements, bills, and refunds, many not-so-important pieces—catalogs, solicitations, and junk mail—will end up in your mailbox.

Conversely, you may have purchased a deceased person’s home from their estate or trust and be receiving their mail at your new address. If you receive mail that is addressed to someone other than you, you want to ensure that the correct person gets the mail. 

How can you stop the post office from delivering mail addressed to a deceased person? Follow these four steps:

1. If you are the executor or personal representative of an estate that has been administered through the probate court and the estate is officially closed, hand-deliver or send a copy of the probate order closing the estate and dismissing you as the executor to the deceased person’s local post office with a request that all mail service be stopped immediately. If you do not take this step and mail continues to trickle in two or more years after the death, the post office may honor forwarding orders for only one year. 

2. To stop mail received as the result of commercial marketing lists (junk mail), log on to the Deceased Do Not Contact Registration page (ims-dm.com/cgi/ddnc.php) of the DMAchoice.org website and enter the deceased person’s information. There is a $1 authentication fee to register for the list. After registering the deceased person on the website, the organization claims that the amount of mail received due to commercial marketing lists should decrease within three months. The deceased person’s friend, relative, or caregiver can register.

3. For magazines, other subscriptions, and mail that are technically not junk mail (for example, solicitations from charities to which the deceased person made donations while they were living), contact the organization directly to inform them of the death. Note that some publishers may issue a refund for unused subscriptions.

4. If you shared the mailing address with the deceased person or are the new owner of the deceased person’s home, write “Deceased, Return to Sender” on any mail addressed to the deceased person and leave it in your mailbox for pickup.

Remember, it is a federal offense to open and read someone else’s mail, so if you are not the legal representative of the deceased person, do not open their mail! If you are ever in doubt, call or visit your local post office for additional instructions.

We know that losing a loved one is difficult. Not only are you grieving your loss, but if you are the executor, personal representative, or successor trustee, you also have work to do. If you need assistance winding up your loved one’s affairs, please call us.

Michael Jackson passed away in 2009, but the settling of his estate continues more than 15 years after his death due to a lingering tax dispute with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and other legal challenges, including a lawsuit brought by his mother over a deal to sell part of his music rights to Sony Music Group for $600 million. 

A Los Angeles appeals court issued a ruling in August 2024 allowing the deal to proceed over the objections of Katherine Jackson, who argued that the transaction with Sony violates the terms of Michael’s will and runs counter to his wishes. The sale will now move forward, providing money for his heirs—and valuable estate planning lessons about trusts and controlling money and property from the grave. 

Background on Music Sale Legal Dispute

According to the terms of Michael Jackson’s will, his entire estate is to be turned over to the Michael Jackson Family Trust. The primary beneficiaries of the trust are his three children and unnamed charities. John Branca, an attorney, and John McClain, an accountant, are the trustees of the trust and the executors of Jackson’s estate. Trustees and executors have similar roles—the winding down of a decedent’s affairs—but in different contexts. A trustee manages accounts and property owned by a trust. An executor (called a personal representative in some states) is responsible for managing a deceased person’s probate estate (which consists of accounts and property in the deceased person’s sole name that did not have a beneficiary at the time of their death) through the probate administration process.

Katherine, Jackson’s mother, is a life beneficiary of a portion of a subtrust, the terms of which give the trustees sole discretion to manage the trust assets (accounts and property owned by the trust) for Katherine’s “care, support, maintenance, and well-being.” When Katherine dies, any remaining assets in her subtrust pass to the children’s share of the trust. 

Jackson’s will was admitted to probate in 2009, but his estate remains frozen due to a long-running tax issue involving $700 million allegedly owed to the IRS. 

A May 2024 court filing shows that, as long as the legal dispute continues, the family trust cannot be funded. In the meantime, however, the family is receiving payments through an allowance provided by the estate and its executors.

In 2010, the probate court authorized the executors to continue running Jackson’s businesses. Because the estate is still pending before the court, the executors had to seek court approval to move ahead with a deal between the Jackson estate and Sony Music to purchase half of the King of Pop’s publishing and recorded masters catalog (called the Mijac catalog). 

When they brought the deal to the judge, Katherine filed objections. Jackson’s children initially sided with their grandmother in opposing the transaction, but after the probate judge ruled last year that the deal could proceed, they accepted the decision. 

Katherine subsequently filed an appeal. The appeal spawned a separate lawsuit between Katherine and Jackson’s son, Bigi, who argues that it is “unfair” that the estate should have to fund her lawsuit against the executors when the Jackson children already decided an appeal was not in their best interests. 

In a court filing, Bigi’s lawyers wrote that participating in an appeal was a waste of resources because the chances of a reversal would be “an extreme longshot.” 

It turns out the lawyers were right. The appeals court sided with the probate court and ruled that the estate can proceed with the sale to Sony, denying Katherine’s attempt to block the agreement. 

Sony will now have a stake in what Billboard says could be the largest valuation of music assets ever—an estimated $1.2–$1.5 billion. 

Appeals Court Ruling

Katherine argued in her appeal that the music rights sale violated the terms of Jackson’s will and established probate law. 

She said Jackson told family members before his death that the assets should never be sold. She also claimed that her son intended to give the “entire estate” to the trust. According to Katherine, his music catalog—not proceeds from selling his music catalog, or partial management rights over that catalog—should pass to the trust. 

In rejecting her arguments, the appeals court determined that Jackson’s will gives the executors “broad powers to buy and sell estate assets in the estate’s best interests” and that “all of the estate’s assets will be distributed to the trust.” 

Katherine argued that these provisions are inconsistent and that the probate court’s order violates the second provision because it allows estate assets to be transferred to a joint venture (i.e., Sony) instead of to the trust. The appeals court disagreed, opining:  

We conclude that the provisions are not inconsistent: Read together, they give the executors broad powers to manage estate property while the estate remains in probate, and they provide for the transfer of all estate property to the trust when the probate action is concluded. . . . The proposed transaction is consistent with the terms of Michael’s will as so interpreted, and thus the probate court did not abuse its discretion by granting the executors’ petition. 

Katherine could still appeal the ruling to the California Supreme Court, but based on the interpretation of the lower court, her chances of a successful overturn are low. 

Planning Lessons from the Estate of Michael Jackson 

“Michael died testate on June 25, 2009,” the appeals court notes in its background to the case. 

Testate means that Michael died with a will. He therefore avoided dying intestate, or without a will—something that has plagued the estates of musical superstars like Prince, Tupac Shakur, and Marvin Gaye. 

Dying intestate can lead to protracted estate litigation between heirs and other interested parties, especially when the estate belongs to a celebrity worth many millions of dollars. We see this with Prince’s estate, which is still being litigated more than eight years after his passing. 

A formal written will takes precedence over oral statements made to friends and family members. It could be the case that Jackson communicated to his mother, as she claims, that the music catalog should never be sold. But goals and wishes casually discussed with friends and family are not legally enforceable unless they have been put in a valid, legally enforceable document. 

Jackson not only left behind a valid will but also created a revocable trust during his lifetime to benefit his children and mother. He additionally had the foresight to place terms on the trust to ensure that his children would be mature enough to receive their large inheritances, stipulating specific disbursements to them at ages 30, 35, and 40. 

Jackson also avoided another mistake in his estate plan by giving broad powers to the executors. Estate planning attorneys typically advise clients to give executors broad powers to buy and sell estate property during probate so they do not have to spend time and money seeking court approval for routine transactions.

Jackson’s will is crystal clear on this point. Article V of his will provides: “I hereby give to my Executors, full power and authority at any time or times to sell, lease, mortgage, pledge, exchange or otherwise dispose of the property, whether real or personal, comprising my estate, upon such terms as my Executors shall deem best . . . .”

This type of provision lets executors sell assets in response to changing circumstances that the original owner might not have been able to predict when they created their estate plan. For example, Jackson’s estate filed a brief with the appellate court claiming they negotiated the Sony deal to take advantage of an asset market that was “by far the hottest it had ever been.” 

On the surface, it looks as though Michael made all the right estate planning moves: He created a will and a trust and gave his executors the authority to maximize his estate’s assets for the benefit of his heirs. But he made one potential mistake: Not all of his assets were transferred into the trust during his lifetime, in a process known as trust funding. Trust funding is crucial to ensure that all of a person’s assets are administered privately under the terms of the trust rather than in the public eye of a probate court.

Michael had what is known as a pour-over will that was intended to transfer all assets not already controlled by the trust into the trust upon his death. Pour-over wills serve as a safety net; they transfer all probate assets into the trust so they can be administered with the other trust assets pursuant to the terms of the trust. 

But leaving assets out of the trust and using a pour-over will to direct them to the trust after his death meant that the assets had to go through probate, opening the estate up to some of its current predicaments, such as the lawsuit his mother filed challenging the executors. 

Create an Estate Plan That Matches Your Legacy Goals

Most people do not have to deal with the complex estate planning considerations that celebrities face, particularly a celebrity on the scale of Michael Jackson, whose musical legacy continues to generate huge profits. Jackson was the top-earning dead celebrity in 2023, a credit to his executors’ successful management of his estate. 

Choosing the right executor and granting executor powers are key aspects of an estate plan that are often overlooked. When making your plan, you are under no obligation to name a friend or family member as executor. You can do what Jackson did and choose professionals with legal and financial expertise. 

His choice of a revocable trust and a pour-over will may be questioned postmortem, but there were probably reasons why he chose this type of arrangement. Failing to fully fund his trust, however, may have been an oversight that could have been prevented with the help of an experienced estate planning attorney.  Estate planning choices involve pros and cons, costs and benefits, that need to be evaluated on an individual basis. What makes sense for Michael Jackson and his heirs—or any other family—might not make sense for you and your loved ones. 

To put your finances and family in the best situation, you need a customized estate plan that is based on your specific wishes for your money and property, and you should revisit your plan every few years to ensure that it reflects current circumstances. 

Call or contact our attorneys for help crafting a plan that meets your legacy goals.

“No, I am your father.” 

These words, uttered by James Earl Jones in his voice-over role as Darth Vader, are indelible in the minds of Star Wars fans. Jones is also well known for voicing Mufasa in The Lion King and a series of cable news promotions in which he declared, “This is CNN.” 

But Jones’s booming basso profundo is just one part of his legacy. The famed actor, who passed away in September at age 93, had a decades-long career in film, television, and theater that earned him a place among the greatest performers of our time. His legacy also includes a collection of properties in upstate New York, a net worth in the tens of millions of dollars, and a deal ensuring that future generations of moviegoers will enjoy his iconic voice. 

From Silent Stutterer to Silver Screen Star

Jones is best remembered for his voice, but as a child, he did not speak for years after he and his family moved from Mississippi to Michigan when he was five years old; the trauma of relocating caused him to develop a stutter. 

“I was mute from grade one through freshman year in high school . . . I just gave up on talking,” Jones said in a 1986 interview.” 

A high school teacher helped Jones find his voice again by encouraging him to read his poetry aloud, sparking a passion for oration and performance that took him from the small stages of northern Michigan to the silver screens of Hollywood. 

Jones won a public speaking contest as a high school senior and received a full scholarship to the University of Michigan, where he studied drama. He then served in the US Army during the Korean War before moving to New York and landing lead roles in Shakespearean stage productions. 

In the mid-1960s, he made his film debut in Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove and scored roles on TV’s Guiding Light and As the World Turns. But it was his 1969 portrayal of boxer Jack Jefferson in The Great White Hope—both on Broadway and in the 1970 film—that brought Jones major recognition, earning him a Tony Award and an Oscar nomination.

Jones was the second African American man nominated for an Academy Award. He eventually won an Oscar in 2011 when he received an Academy Honorary Award, making him one of the few entertainers to achieve the EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony).

He never won an award for his voice role as Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise, but it was this 1977 performance that gained him international fame and immortalized his voice in popular culture. 

Jones chose to take a lump-sum payment of $7,000 (the equivalent of around $36,000 today)—instead of a share of profits—to voice the villainous Vader and, at the time, considered it good money. However, choosing the lump sum over a profit-share option reportedly cost him and his family millions in payouts. 

Explaining his thought process years later, Jones said that as a starving young actor, he never expected Star Wars to achieve its cult status and become a multibillion-dollar franchise: “Seven thousand dollars was big money for me in those days. I was broke and needed the money to pay rent and buy groceries.”

Jones retired from his Darth Vader role in 2019. Prior to his passing, however, he teamed up with a Ukrainian AI company to recreate his voice and gave Lucasfilm permission to use it in future productions. His AI-generated Darth Vader voice can be heard in Disney’s 2022 Obi Wan Kenobi series. According to IMDb, it was his final credit. 

With the deal, the voice we almost never heard is now assured to live forever. And while Jones’s legacy is inseparable from what he did behind the microphone, what he achieved on-screen is equally memorable. His nearly 200 film and television credits include Roots, Conan the Barbarian, Coming to America, Field of Dreams, The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, The Simpsons, and Cry, the Beloved Country. 

Personal Life, Properties, and Probable Sole Heir

Jones died on September 9, 2024, surrounded by family at his home in Pawling, New York, located in Dutchess County. He had an estimated net worth of $40 million at the time of his death. 

Jones fell in love with Dutchess County during a road trip there in 1970 with a friend who was interested in property for sale. His friend passed on buying the property, but Jones ended up securing the land for himself. Far from the bright lights of Hollywood, Jones lived the rest of his life in Pawling, where he was active in the local community and he and his wife raised their son, Flynn. 

He liked it so much, in fact, that he bought 10 neighboring properties over the years and laid down roots of his own. Jones had a particularly close relationship with Poughkeepsie Day School, which Flynn attended from 1994 to 2001. In 2000, the school named its auditorium the James Earl Jones Theater in his honor. 

Flynn was born in 1982 to Jones and his second wife, Cecilia Hart, shortly after the couple wed. Hart, also an actor, died of ovarian cancer in 2016. 

Flynn Earl Jones was close to his father and, though not an actor himself, followed in his footsteps by working as an audiobook narrator. He also married an actress, Lorena Monagas. The couple wed in 2019 in Tarrytown, New York, an hour south of Pawling. Flynn has 17 voiceover credits on Audible.com but prefers a life out of the spotlight and has no social media profiles. 

As James’s only child, Flynn could be the sole inheritor of his late father’s estate, although there are few public details about the estate plan. 

An obituary from the Horn & Thomes, Inc. Funeral Home in Pawling notes that Jones leaves behind “a loving family including his son Flynn Earl Jones, daughter-in law Lorena Monagas Jones, his brother Matthew Earl Jones, his Aunt Helen Irene Georgia Connolly Morgan and many, many others.”

Matthew Earl Jones is James’s half-brother. They have different mothers and the same father. It is uncertain whether he or other family members will share an inheritance with Flynn. 

It is also possible that Jones included charitable giving in his estate plan, given his community-mindedness. Those who knew him in Dutchess County praised his generous spirit. He supported several charities, such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Habitat for Humanity. His obituary states that, in lieu of flowers, donations in his honor can be made to Hudson Valley Hospice, providing another hint that Jones might have left part of his estate to charity. 

For a man of his accomplishments and fame, Jones managed to stay largely out of the public eye. He even requested that his name not appear in the credits of the first two Star Wars movies in deference to the actor in the Darth Vader costume. 

In the few interviews he did give, Jones often reflected on his preference for a quieter life. It would not be surprising if he maintained this privacy in death by using trusts to transfer assets to beneficiaries. A trust agreement stays private, unlike a will, which is a public record once filed with the probate court. 

Estate Planning Is Not Just for Celebrities

Celebrity estate plans often make headlines only when something goes wrong and causes family drama. Actors Philip Seymour Hoffman and Heath Ledger, for example, both failed to update their estate plans to include a new child who had been born prior to their passing. Other famous actors, such as Bob Saget, Norm McDonald, and Gilbert Gottfried, died without a will, leading to protracted legal disputes in each case. 

Arguably, the biggest mistake that Jones made was forgoing the profit-share option when he signed on to voice Vader. He admitted in 2010 that this decision cost him “tens of millions of dollars.” But Jones can be forgiven for this youthful indiscretion. Almost nobody—not even George Lucas—expected Star Wars to make much money. 

We all make mistakes when we are starting our careers and beginning to build our legacies. How we finish is more important. Given what we know about Jones, it seems highly unlikely that he would neglect the people and causes he cared about through a lack of estate planning. 

If he were still alive today and asked about his estate plan, he might respond, to quote Darth Vader in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope: “I find your lack of faith disturbing.” Call us to schedule a consultation.

According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, there were more than 670,000 divorces¹ and more than 2 million marriages in 2022. Divorce is a common life event that many Americans face during their lifetime. Some states have laws that automatically end an ex-spouse’s appointment as decision-maker in their spouse’s estate plan with the ending of their marriage, as well as their right to any inheritance to which they may have been entitled. However, what happens if you die after you file for divorce but before it becomes final? 

Shannen Doherty faced this same question. In her case, the divorce was deemed to be finalized before her death.

Life and Career

Born April 12, 1971, in Memphis, Tennessee, Shannen Doherty is most known for her iconic roles as Jenny Wilder in Little House on the Prairie; Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills, 90210; and Prue Halliwell in Charmed. After battling stage IV cancer for more than four years, she passed away on July 13, 2024. Surviving her are her mother, with whom she was very close, and her brother, Sean.

Divorce from Kurt Iswarienko

While Doherty was battling cancer, she was also in the midst of a divorce from her third husband, Kurt Iswarienko. The divorce proceedings took more than 15 months to conclude, with Doherty filing for an uncontested divorce and signing the necessary paperwork the day before she died. Iswarienko signed the documents on July 13, 2024.² A family law judge signed off on the divorce two days after Doherty passed away.³

According to a stipulated agreement with Iswarienko, Doherty’s estate was able to retain the couple’s home in Malibu, California; a Salvador Dali painting; several cars; and all earnings from her acting.⁴ In addition, as part of the divorce proceedings, she had filed an income and expense declaration stating that she had $251,000 in the bank; another $1,880,000 in stocks and bonds; and insurance money from a lawsuit over damage done to her California home. ⁵She also stated that she had real property worth $3 million and $134,000 in a pension fund.⁶

Doherty’s Plans

In an interview with E! News, Doherty discussed how she had started to sell some of her valuables and, with that money, was able to take trips with her loved ones to create memories.⁷ She also acknowledged that, in selling property and other items, her priority was to make things as easy as possible for her mom.⁸

What Might Have Happened?

With both parties finalizing the divorce and signing their respective waivers, Doherty was able to control what would happen to her money and property at her death. Had she passed away before the divorce was recognized as final, things could have looked much different. Because a marriage is a legal relationship while you are alive, the passing of one spouse ends the marriage, leaving the other party as the surviving spouse. 

If She Had a Will, Trust, or Beneficiary Designations

Although she and Iswarienko were in the middle of divorce proceedings, Doherty could probably not change the provisions in her estate plan that dictated who would receive her money and property until the divorce became final. Therefore, any money or property that she would have left her soon-to-be former spouse under a will, trust, or beneficiary designation would probably still go to him. If he was not included in her will or trust, he may have been able to file a claim against her estate for his elective share (a statutory minimum that a surviving spouse receives).

If She Did Not Have a Will or Trust

Had there been no will or trust, California’s intestacy statute (the state’s plan for what happens to a person’s money and property if they die without a will or trust) would have dictated what Iswarienko was entitled to. According to the statute, his inheritance would have been

• her half of their community property,
• her half of their quasi-community property, and
• half her separate property.⁹

Although he would have ended up with all the community property and quasi-community property, he would have had to share Doherty’s separate property with her mother.¹⁰

What We Know about Her Estate Plan

At present, the exact terms of Doherty’s estate plan are unknown, but we do know that Doherty’s mother played an important role in her life and was someone she wanted to provide for. This lack of public information may be because Doherty utilized a trust or beneficiary designations as part of her estate plan. The benefit of both strategies is that the matter stays out of the courts and the public eye. However, utilizing a trust allows for additional restrictions and instructions about how a beneficiary receives their inheritance, while naming someone as a beneficiary via a beneficiary designation will usually result in the beneficiary receiving the full amount outright with no additional protections or restrictions.

We Are Here to Help

We know that going through a divorce and planning for your incapacity and death can be stressful. We are here to help you through this rough chapter so that you can craft a protected future for yourself and your loved ones. Please call us to schedule an appointment to discuss how we can create a plan to meet your unique needs.

1. CDC, Marriage and Divorce, National Ctr. for Health Statistics (Mar. 14, 2024), https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/marriage-divorce.htm. ↩︎
2. Diana Cabrices, Shannen Doherty’s Estate: When Timing is Everything, WealthManagement.com (Aug. 13, 2024), https://www.wealthmanagement.com/print/161390. ↩︎
3. Shannen Doherty finalized divorce hours before death, AP (July 18, 2024), https://apnews.com/article/shannen-doherty-divorce-death-iswarienko-laura-wasser-0d9fbb475ae64fed1ccdc0a03eb69cf6. ↩︎
4. Id. ↩︎
5. Ryan Nauman, Shannen Doherty’s Estate: Actress Left Behind $6 Million Malibu Mansion, 7-Figure Sum for Family, Y!entertainment (July 14, 2024), https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/shannen-doherty-estate-actress-left-105924129.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8%E2%80%A6. ↩︎
6. Id. ↩︎
7. Elyse Dupre, Shannen Doherty Details Letting Go of Her Possessions Amid Cancer Battle, ENews (Apr. 2, 2024), https://www.eonline.com/news/1398634/shannen-doherty-details-letting-go-of-her-possessions-amid-cancer-battle. ↩︎
8. Id. ↩︎
9. Cal. Prob. Code § 6401(a)–(c). ↩︎
10. Id.  § 6401(c)(2)(B). ↩︎

One common way to avoid the probate requirement for real estate after the owner dies is to add children or other individuals to the property title as joint owners with rights of survivorship. When joint owners have survivorship rights and one joint owner passes away, the remaining owners automatically receive the entire interest of the deceased owner. 

For example, if there are three joint owners with rights of survivorship, when one passes away, the two remaining owners each own 50 percent of the real estate by operation of law. No court involvement or probate is required to make this transfer. When the second owner passes away, the surviving owner owns 100 percent of the real estate. Again, no probate is required to make this transfer.  

To create joint ownership with survivorship rights, the current owner prepares a new deed that transfers the property from themselves (as the original owner) to themselves and the children or other individuals they would like to share in ownership. The deed should also include language to indicate that the recipients are joint owners with rights of survivorship. The exact language included in the deed will be governed by state law. The signed deed is then recorded in applicable public land records.

Many believe they do not need an attorney to help them prepare and record a new deed. Instead, they think a deed template can simply be downloaded online or obtained from a book, filled out, signed, and then easily recorded. However, deeds are legal documents that must comply with state law to be valid. In addition, in many states, property will not pass to the other owners listed in a deed free of probate unless certain specific legal terms are included in the deed.

What Happens if There Is a Mistake with My Deed?  

If there are problems with a defective deed or a deed is invalid, and it is discovered before the owner dies, then the problems may be addressed by preparing and recording a corrective deed in the applicable public land records, depending on your state law. This should be done only with the assistance of an attorney to ensure that the correction is actually a correction and causes no additional issues with the deed or property title.

Unfortunately, problems with a defective or invalid deed are often not discovered until after the owner’s death. If this is the case, the problems cannot be fixed with a corrective deed since the deceased owner is unable to sign it. Instead, the property will most likely need to be probated to correct the problems with the title. Aside from the probate process taking time and costing money for legal fees and court expenses, the property cannot be sold until the problems with the title have been sorted out in probate court. Worse yet, the property could end up being inherited by someone the owner did not want receiving it, either because they intended to disinherit the individual or because they wanted someone else to receive the property. 

What Should You Do?

If you want to add your children or other beneficiaries to your deed to avoid probate and you think you can save a few bucks by using a form you find online or in a book, think again. Deeds are legal documents with very specific requirements and are governed by different laws in each state (in other words, a deed valid in New York may not necessarily be valid in Florida).  

If you want your home or other real estate to pass to your children or other beneficiaries without probate, seek the advice of an attorney familiar with the probate and real estate laws of the state where your property is located. This will ensure that the deed will be valid and that your property will, in fact, avoid probate and pass on to your intended heirs. Adding individuals to your deed may not be the best approach, depending on the circumstances. There are considerations related to gifting, tax consequences, and potential misuse that you may not have yet considered. In addition, if your ultimate concern is avoiding probate, an experienced estate planning attorney can discuss all the options available to you to ensure that any actions are taken in your best interest and carry out your wishes for your loved ones. If you are interested in crafting a plan to avoid probate for your loved ones, call us.

Stereotypes surrounding “only child syndrome” have largely been debunked, as recent studies show that only children, on average, develop social skills similar to those of children with siblings.¹ Further, outdated perceptions surrounding only children have shifted as the average size of the American family has shrunk, and one-child families have become far more common.

Raising an only child can still sometimes present unique challenges for both the child and the parents, especially in the area of estate planning. In some ways, having one child simplifies the process. However, leaving your entire estate to them and making them the sole decision-maker for all the roles in your estate plan may not be ideal. 

While the child’s age, personality, and lifestyle are major factors when estate planning with an only child, there are other considerations to keep in mind. 

The Shrinking American Family 

Large families used to be the norm in the United States. At the peak of the baby boom (1946–1964), the average American family had 3.7 children, compared to 1.9 currently.² 

Around one in five households today are one-child families,³ and census data show that one-child families are the fastest-growing family unit in the United States. From 1976 to 2015, the number of parents with one child doubled from 11 percent to 22 percent.⁴ 

Providing for Your Only Child in an Estate Plan

Generally, parents of only children are often in a better position to provide for them economically for multiple reasons. Higher educational attainment among parents is often associated with fewer children, and there is a strong correlation between education and income. Forgoing multiple children can also mean that parents have more resources available for raising their only child, which from birth to age 18 was estimated to cost more than $310,000 in 2022.⁵ 

Increasingly, the costs of raising a child do not end at age 18. Today, approximately 45 percent of young adults (18 to 29 years old) live at home with their parents,⁶ and many remain financially dependent on their parents for support.⁷ 

Findings from a recent Pew Research survey show that most parents and young adults rate their relationship with one another as very good or excellent.⁸ However, concerning estate planning, there appears to be a disconnect between the parents’ expectations and the child’s. 

A 2024 study from Northwestern Mutual found that 32 percent of millennials and 38 percent of Gen Z expect to receive an inheritance—but only about 22 percent of Gen X and boomer parents plan to leave one.⁹ Although 35 percent of boomers said giving a financial gift to the next generation was very important, only 11 percent indicated it was their top financial goal.¹⁰

Northwestern Mutual says that the study finds “a considerable gap exists between what Gen Z and millennials expect in the way of an inheritance and what their parents are actually planning to do.”¹¹

Among children expecting to receive an inheritance, half consider it “highly critical” or “critical” to their long-term financial security.¹² That number is highest for millennials (59 percent), including 26 percent of millennials who said they will not be able to achieve long-term financial security without an inheritance.¹³ 

With all this in mind, leaving everything to an only child in an estate plan is the most straightforward option for parents. However, there is no legal obligation to leave a child anything in your estate plan. 

Even if your child no longer relies on you financially, parents can have good reasons for limiting a child’s inheritance or disinheriting them altogether. Whether you are estranged from your adult child, they do not need the money, or they are not responsible enough to handle an inheritance, your estate plan is your prerogative—and yours alone. Should you decide that somebody else—such as other family members, close friends, or a charity—is more needy or deserving, it is your right to leave your money and property to them instead of your child. 

Of course, gifting to loved ones upon your passing is not an all-or-nothing proposition. You can split gifts among a child and other beneficiaries. If you have concerns about your child receiving a lump-sum inheritance, you can place money for them in a trust and name a trustee to manage the money for them, with distributions made at the trustee’s discretion or tied to incentives and milestones (e.g., holding a job, getting married, or starting a business). 

Your Only Child’s Role in Your Estate Plan

Creating an estate plan involves naming key decision-makers who will act for you during your life (in other words, during a period of temporary or permanent incapacity) as well as after you are gone. You may be considering appointing your only child to some or all of these roles: 

• Personal representative/executor. This is the person named in a will (or appointed by the court if there is no will) to wind up your affairs after your death. Their responsibilities include inventorying, locating, and distributing your money and property, paying outstanding debts, filing a final tax return, submitting court documents, and communicating with beneficiaries or heirs. 
• Successor trustee. This is the person you name in your revocable living trust to manage the trust’s accounts and property for the benefit of the beneficiaries you name. A common estate planning strategy is to name yourself as the initial trustee of a trust that holds your money and property and provides instructions about distributing them during your life and when you pass away. 
• Agent under a power of attorney. Powers of attorney are legal documents that allow you to name other people (your agents) to handle your financial and medical affairs on your behalf when you are unable to do so. The individual you nominate as your agent or attorney-in-fact can be given broad, unilateral legal authority to make important health and money decisions for you when necessary. 

Each of these roles comes with significant responsibility. Making your only child responsible for all of them might be too much for them to handle. Ask yourself the following questions: 

• Does your child have the right skills and aptitudes for this role?
• Do you trust them with your finances or to make your medical decisions the way you would like them to be made?
• Can they make tough decisions, handle pressure, and uphold legal duties?
• Do they have the right disposition to handle any disputes that might arise with creditors or beneficiaries? 
• Do they have a busy professional or personal life that might interfere with their obligations to you and your estate? 

Just as you are under no obligation to leave everything (or anything) to your only child, you are not required to name them as a key decision-maker in your estate plan. As an alternative, you could choose a close friend, a family member, or a professional (e.g., a professional or corporate trustee) to fill these roles. 

Your choice of executor, successor trustee, and attorney-in-fact should be based on the person’s ability to carry out the necessary duties competently—not on feelings of loyalty or obligation. 

Dividing the powers among different individuals can also provide checks and balances that prevent a single individual from exercising too much control over you and what you own. Naming your only child to multiple roles may raise conflict-of-interest questions as well, especially if they are not the sole or primary beneficiary.

Balancing Head and Heart in Your Estate Plan

Parents are no strangers to weighing practical concerns for their children alongside the unconditional love they feel for them. Striking the right balance does not necessarily get easier as you age and your child becomes an adult. It might even become more complicated as you sit down to design an estate plan and make the important decisions in creating a comprehensive plan. 

For advice about creating an estate plan that is best for everyone—you, your child, friends, family, and others you care about—while accomplishing your specific goals, contact an estate planning attorney and schedule a meeting. 

1. Zara Abrams, Only children are often misunderstood. Take a closer look at the science. 55 Monitor on Psychology 6 (Sept. 1, 2024), https://www.apa.org/monitor/2024/09/only-children. ↩︎
2. The Only-Child Family, Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/family-dynamics/only-child-family (last visited Oct. 25, 2024). ↩︎
3. Id. ↩︎
4. Gretchen Livingston, Family Size Among Mothers, Pew Rsch. Ctr. (May 7, 2015), https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2015/05/07/family-size-among-mothers/. ↩︎
5. Kendra Holten, The True Cost of Raising a Child, IFS (July 17, 2023), https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-true-cost-of-raising-a-child. ↩︎
6. Elizabeth Napolitano, More young adults are living at home across the U.S. Here’s why., CBS MoneyWatch (Sept. 21, 2023), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gen-z-millennials-living-at-home-harris-poll/. ↩︎
7. Dylan Croll, A lot of young adults aren’t financially independent. Here’s what parents can do (July 9, 2023), https://finance.yahoo.com/news/a-lot-of-young-adults-arent-financially-independent-heres-what-parents-can-do-173631356.html. ↩︎
8. Rachel Minkin, et. al., Parents; relationship with their young adult children, Pew Rsch. Ctr. (Jan. 5, 2024), https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2024/01/25/parents-relationship-with-their-young-adult-children/. ↩︎
9. Northwestern Mutual, As $90 Trillion “Great Wealth Transfer” Approaches, Just 1 in 4 Americans Expect to Leave an Inheritance (Aug. 6, 2024), https://news.northwesternmutual.com/2024-08-06-As-90-Trillion-Great-Wealth-Transfer-Approaches,-Just-1-in-4-Americans-Expect-to-Leave-an-Inheritance. ↩︎
10. Id. ↩︎
11. Id. ↩︎
12. Id. ↩︎
13. Id. ↩︎