What is Community Property?
Merriam-Webster defines “defunct” as “no longer living, existing, or functioning.” In Washington, a “defunct marriage” is a term for spouses who have given up any hope of salvaging the relationship, and yet for whatever...more
This fifth installment of my multi-part series on Subchapter S is focused on married individuals who own shares of an S corporation. While the rules relating to shareholder eligibility seem straightforward, their application...more
Unknown to many Floridians, Florida enacted the Community Property Trust Act which went into effect on July 1, 2021, and established the ability to convert non-community property into community property. The community...more
Around the world there are millions of people who rely on insurance for homes and vehicles to celebrity body parts. Nowadays, there is even insurance to cover the postponement or cancellation of one’s wedding. Ironically,...more
As a divorce lawyer in Washington State, it is common for new clients to come in to our first meeting with the understanding that Washington is a community property state and believing that this means all property and debts...more
Divorcing spouses often have a number of business issues to resolve, but one key aspect that is often overlooked takes place when divorce settlements involve the division of an ownership interest in a private company. ...more
This presentation covers trust issues that arise in divorce disputes, such as spouses creating an irrevocable trust, fraud claims to void a trust, conflict of interest issues raised by the same attorney drafting both spouse’s...more
In recent years, cryptocurrency has sparked concern in some divorcing clients. We hear questions such as “I believe my spouse has cryptocurrency or other digital assets and we are going through a divorce. What can I expect?”...more
Generally, when a taxpayer makes an overpayment of tax, the IRS refunds the overpayment to the taxpayer. But this is not always the case. For example, the IRS has the statutory authority to credit (or offset) an overpayment...more
In most cases, a marriage represents the joining of two families, rather than simply the two individuals who take vows. It is perhaps unsurprising therefore that the emotional fallout of a divorce can similarly involve the...more
October 2021 Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts - Federal interest rates increased slightly for October of 2021. The October applicable...more
A deed of trust beneficiary usually feels pretty confident with the validity of the deed as long as it is signed by an owner of the property. But when the property constitutes community property of a married couple, is...more
In Estate of Tillotson, an administrator of a decedent’s estate filed a turn over motion to have the decedent’s husband turn over the decedent’s community property interest in certain accounts. No. 05-20-00258-CV, 2021 Tex....more
Jack Bux and his high school sweetheart, Diane, have been married a few years, but the pandemic has taken its toll on their relationship, and they could soon be parting ways....more
Texas is a “community property” state; but all property in Texas is not “community property”. In Texas, each spouse can have his or her own “separate” property, which generally consists of property that was acquired by gift...more
In re Brace, 470 P.3d 15 (Cal. 2020), a California married couple acquired real property with community funds, and took title as “husband and wife as joint tenants.” When the husband filed a chapter 7 petition in bankruptcy,...more
Many Californians get married without understanding the contract they are entering into. Here are the basics of California Family Law...more
In Leland House v. Webb, a husband sued his deceased wife’s executor to quiet title in real estate that she obtained from her aunt. No. 06-19-00054-CV, 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 10012 (Tex. App.—Texarkana November 19, 2019, no...more
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act offers servicemembers financial protections, including the ability to have interest rates reduced to 6%, when a servicemember is called to active duty after entering into a credit...more
In Naidoo v Discovery Life Limited & others (202/20170) ZASCA 88 (31 May 2018) the Supreme Court of Appeal was faced with the main task of determining whether a risk-only policy with a beneficiary clause constitutes an asset...more
You know how the vows go: “for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, in district court or in arbitration…” Wait a minute. Last Wednesday, a federal district court in Arizona held that a TCPA plaintiff was...more
In United States v. Smith, 117 AFTR 2d 2016-XXXX (February 8, 2016), the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington allowed the Federal government to foreclose on the taxpayers’ primary residence in...more
When a Chapter 7, 11, or 13 case is filed, a new entity is created called the bankruptcy estate. A bankruptcy estate is comprised of all of the debtor’s non-exempt legal or equitable interests in property as of the time of...more
During the recession, we occasionally heard of couples who were divorcing, but still cohabitating. For economic reasons, neither spouse moved out of the house – they continued to share or divide financial responsibilities as...more
Protecting family assets in the event of a divorce is particularly significant for family business owners, who typically want to avoid sharing ownership with their ex-spouses or their children’s ex-spouses. A prenuptial...more