Anderson, Dorn & Rader Blog

When you start to do some research into the topic of estate planning you will invariably see frequent mention of probate avoidance strategies. For people who deal with these matters […]

An ethical will is a method to share your moral and spiritual values. It is a method to convey the lessons you learned in life to your loved ones. An ethical will can be looked at as a heartfelt final letter to your family. You let your loved ones know how you feel about them, share personally acquired wisdom, and get things off your chest if you find that to be necessary.

As estate and retirement planning attorneys, part of what we do is help our clients prepare for some of the challenges that go along with aging; things like possible incapacitation […]

When you are in a position to leave behind inheritances that can have life changing consequences for your loves ones you have a pleasant problem. You may want to make life easier on your family than they were for you, but at the same time you don't want to adversely impact one's motivation and work ethic. An incentive trust may be the answer.

For those Americans who have been able to build some wealth throughout their lifetimes, estate planning has a lot to do with addressing the reality of the estate tax. Many […]

A large part of retirement planning involves trying to predict the costs that you will be facing in the future. This is very challenging because there are many variables at […]

We have all been involved in situations at various points in our lives when we decided to try to fix something on our own. There are times when you can […]

When you are working through your estate planning checklist you may have a lot of ground to cover depending on the size of your estate and the specificity of your […]

An integral part of your estate plan is creating documents that express your end of life decisions concerning healthcare.

You may find yourself with a lot on your plate and when you do, you have to set your priorities. There are some matters that must be revisited every year, […]

There is an old saying that goes something like "Give a man a fish, he eats for a day; teach him to fish, he eats for a lifetime." This is […]

When you start to look into the subject of estate planning you see a lot written about employing strategies that are intended to help you avoid probate. Unless you are […]

Due to provisions contained the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, the estate tax was repealed for 2010. However, the estate tax is scheduled to return to […]

The estate tax is repealed for 2010, but when it was last in effect back in 2009, the exclusion was $3.5 million. The exclusion stood at $2 million from 2006 […]

In this modern era it is not uncommon for women to accumulate significant assets of their own during their lifetime, and when they pass away they’ll want to leave those […]

Even if your original retirement plan is as a couple, it might be a good idea to consider the possibility that you could become a widow at some point during […]

Don't neglect the gift of your life story.

The details of our lives are constantly evolving. So in a very real sense estate planning is an ongoing process rather than a single event. A plan that makes sense for you today may not be appropriate five, ten, or twenty years from now. There are many strategies that can be utilized in a well drafted estate plan depending on the specifics of your situation. Life insurance is one such tool in an estate planners tool box.