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February 2025
603-894-4141 | 978-969-0331 | LegacyCareLaw.com
Early Planning, Long-Term Peace
How Young Adults Can Protect Their Families and Futures
Are the young adults in your life prepared with a proper estate plan? Since many fall for the false belief that estate planning is only for the older generations, I want to discuss why it’s essential for people in their 20s and 30s to consider planning and what risks they face by remaining unprepared. Many young adults, particularly those just starting their careers or families, may not think estate planning is necessary. It’s common to associate estate planning with older age or considerable wealth. However, life’s unpredictability doesn’t discriminate by age. Young adults face specific risks and have unique considerations that make having an estate plan not just wise but essential. One critical component is a young person’s health care directive. This document is invaluable if a young adult becomes incapacitated due to an accident or illness. Without a health care directive, parents may not even have the legal authority to make medical decisions for their adult children. Moreover, HIPAA laws could prevent them from even receiving information about their child’s medical condition. This scenario is a parent’s nightmare — being kept in the dark during a critical moment due to a lack of proper legal documents. For young families, especially those in their 30s with young children, the thought of planning for guardianship is daunting but necessary. No one wants to think about the possibility of passing
on and leaving young children behind. But should anything happen to the parents, a clear and legally binding plan must be in place to ensure trusted individuals care for the children and that any inherited assets are appropriately managed. A simple will might name guardians, but it often isn’t enough to avoid lengthy and stressful court proceedings. Additionally, today’s younger generation lives a significant portion of their lives online, creating a digital footprint older generations don’t have. These assets, from social media accounts to digital banking, require careful management and protection. An estate plan that includes digital assets is crucial for ensuring online profiles are transferred or closed according to the deceased’s wishes and that digital wealth is distributed appropriately. Starting this conversation with clients about their children or young friends often opens their eyes to the necessity of early estate planning. It’s not just about having a will, but covering all aspects of one’s life — from physical and medical to digital and beyond. The risks of neglecting to create an estate plan can be significant. Without one, young adults leave their health decisions in the hands of strangers, their assets subject to state laws, the guardianship of their children undecided, and their digital legacy potentially in limbo. I encourage you to share this message with your younger family members or friends. Help them understand the importance of these decisions and how they can protect themselves and their futures. If you or they need legal guidance, my firm is here to provide the necessary support and information to create a comprehensive estate plan tailored to their needs. Remember, estate planning is a profound act of care — not just for oneself but for one’s family and future. It’s never too early to start, and it’s certainly a conversation worth having at any stage in life.
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SAFEGUARD YOUR LEGACY The Benefits of Forming a QTIP Trust
Every family has a unique dynamic and history. If you have been married more than once, you may feel conflicted about the needs of your current spouse versus your children’s needs from previous marriages. However, you can preserve your legacy and provide for all your loved ones in your estate plan without alienating your children or spouse. By incorporating a Qualified Terminable Interest Property (QTIP) trust into your estate plan, you can solve the issue equitably, giving both parties the security they need. How QTIPS Work Unlike other trusts, QTIP trusts allow you to name a life beneficiary and a final beneficiary for your property. For instance, you can name your spouse as your life beneficiary, who will have
limited rights to use the property set aside in the trust during their lifetime. Then, you can name your children as the final beneficiaries, who will inherit the property in the trust after you pass away. If your spouse passes away before you do, the property in the trust will be given directly to your final beneficiaries without needing alterations. QTIPs also offer benefits for a surviving spouse. Any income from the trust can go to the surviving spouse for the rest of their life, and estate taxes are not assessed until after the surviving spouse’s death. The Advantages QTIPs are a great way to meet the needs of two conflicting parties of beneficiaries. It is ideal for people who have been married more than once and have children from
previous marriages; few options offer such a flexible trust that allows your children to inherit your property after your living spouse no longer needs it. This can help ease tension and reduce disagreements when settling your estate.
Planning for the Unthinkable Explore Funding Options and Pet Trusts
As a pet owner, the thought of your pets no longer being with you is something you don’t like thinking about. After all, you’ve had them their entire lives. Now, imagine the roles are reversed. What if something happens to you first, and you can no longer care for your pet? It’s a daunting thought, but pet estate planning is designed to ensure your
pet is well taken care of in the event of your passing or incapacitation.
caring for your pet now. Then, take that amount and project how long your pet is likely to live to determine a number. Also, consider reasonable compensation for the person caring for your pet. Life insurance and retirement plans are excellent financial sources for funding your pet’s lifetime care. Establish a pet trust and trustee. Unlike life insurance and retirement plans as funding sources, pet trusts legally shore up the financial obligations of caring for your pet. Ultimately, the money you leave the caretaker isn’t a lump sum they can spend anywhere; it provides accountability for how they spend it. Your caretaker can be the trustee, too, but it could create a conflict of interest. A professional trustee is probably best to ensure funds are distributed according to your wishes.
Who will care for your pet? Before discussing the legal and financial aspects of pet planning, the first step is to consider who will get physical custody of your pet. Like planning for children, you must be comfortable with the caregiver. Have they interacted with your pets before? How do they treat their pets? Family and friends will likely be your go-to, but never assume they will take on the responsibility of your pet. Whomever you’re considering, be sure to have an intentional conversation with them about your wishes. Determine the finances for the lifetime of your pet. How much is enough? First, do the math to figure out how much you spend
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Weird Stories From World War II GHOSTS AND GOLD
enemy attention and resources away from the rest of the front. Deployed on Jan. 20, 1944, the Ghost Army comprised of around 1,000 men, including artists, fashion designers, and geniuses. The unit utilized inflatable tanks and vehicles, sent out phony commands over the radio, and even created a landfill big enough to convince any aerial reconnaissance that a much larger force was camped at their location. Operation Golden Eye Following the Spanish Civil War, a fascist regime sympathetic to Nazi Germany, led by Francisco Franco, assumed control of Spain. While Spain was neutral during the war — partly due to skillful diplomacy by the Allies — the British Army prepared for the worst. If Spain entered the war and Germany invaded British Gibraltar, they needed a plan to repel the invasion and defeat the Spanish and German armies. The British tasked Commander Ian Fleming of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve with this task. The plan was nicknamed Operation Golden Eye. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Ian Fleming went on to write a series of spy novels starring its titular character, James Bond.
World War II, the largest conflict in human history, saw millions of soldiers engaged in fierce battles across the globe, from the deserts of Tunisia and the muddy fields of Kursk to the streets of Singapore and the tropical atolls of the Marshall Islands. Some oddities go overlooked among the countless acts of heroism, savagery, desperation, stalemates, victories, and defeats. Bizarre events, characters, and plans that sound too outlandish to be true (but are!) prove reality is often stranger than fiction. The Ghost Army Deception is a prominent part of war, but the U.S. Army invented an entirely new way of misleading the enemy. The 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, nicknamed the “Ghost Army,” was a unit dedicated to creating a fake army capable of drawing
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9 Red Roof Lane, Salem, NH 03079 603-894-4141 978-969-0331 LegacyCareLaw.com
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
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Are Your Children Prepared for Life’s Unexpected Turns?
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Build Thorough Estate Plans With QTIP Trusts
Ensure Your Pet Is Cared For
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2 Bizarre Stories From World War II
Why Brando’s Housekeeper Sued His Estate
Brando’s Beneficiaries HOUSEKEEPER SUED ESTATE OVER BROKEN PROMISES
Who Were Brando’s Beneficiaries? The problems with settling Brando’s estate did not stem from a lack of preparation: He had a valid will they followed. Instead, those not included in his document created the issues. Marlon Brando was married three times and had 11 children and 30 grandchildren. However, he reportedly cut most of them out of his will, leaving the bulk of his estate to his
Marlon Brando, considered by many to be the greatest actor of the 20th century, appeared in timeless classics like “Apocalypse Now” (1979), where he played the villainous Colonel Kurtz, and “The Godfather” (1972), where he stole the screen as Don Vito Corleone, the soft-spoken and poignant mob boss. However, in stark contrast to his illustrious film career, after Brando’s passing in 2004, settling his estate — considered worth more than $25 million — was a disaster. Near the end of his life, Brando reportedly made amendments to his will that favored business over familial connections — with allegations from some of his primary beneficiaries that he was not in the right state of mind to make these changes. Needless to say, the contents of his will caused considerable controversy, infighting, and numerous lawsuits.
producer and several associates. Housekeeper but No House
In addition to his long list of progeny, Brando excluded his longtime (about 10 years) housekeeper and personal assistant, Angela Borlaza, from his will. According to Borlaza, her star employer had promised to leave her his home in Winnetka, California, after he died. However, despite Borlaza’s insistence that he made his promise verbally, no record of it existed anywhere
in his estate plan. Regardless, Borlaza sued Brando’s estate for $627,000, the estimated value of the home at the time, but ended up settling for $125,000.
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