Beneficiary designations are an essential component of every estate plan; however, these designations are often overlooked. As a bit of background, there is a distinction between probate assets and ...

While in the process of divorcing, your attorney will remind you that you cannot change beneficiary designations on your accounts until the divorce is finalized. It is not uncommon to want to put the ...

A financial advisor can help you understand how your beneficiary choices fit into your financial strategy and ensure your assets go where you want them to go. It may also make sense to work with a ...

Most parties know the importance of saving original wills. They are executed with great formality, notarized, and regarded as the final work in distribution of property. What many, if not most, people ...

A federal district court has ruled for a second time on litigation arising from a dispute over verbal and written beneficiary designations. A thorny Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ...

Understanding the difference between per stirpes and per capita can determine whether your grandchildren receive an inheritance or are unintentionally left out.

When you die, anything that you own which has titling is either given to your beneficiaries via your will or via a will substitute. Any titled asset which does not have a will substitute goes into ...

An employer’s retirement plan documents did not incorporate beneficiary designation forms in its language or appendices, so the forms did not govern the award of benefits, a court ruled. A federal ...

Some financial products like life insurance or tax-advantaged retirement accounts require you to name one or more beneficiaries. However, that’s not the case with many assets. For instance, you can ...

Designating your beneficiary on a life insurance policy is one of the most important parts of the policy.After all, the reason you are buying the policy is to provide the financial assistance needed ...

Some financial products like life insurance or tax-advantaged retirement accounts require you to name one or more beneficiaries. However, that's not the case with many assets. For instance, you can ...

A client can designate their spouse as a successor owner and annuitant of a non-registered segregated fund and their children as beneficiaries, Herman said. The policy continues to be in force and ...