Blog – The Fleming Law Firm

Estate Planning during the COVID 19 pandemic

Thu, 16 Apr 2020 02:33:00 GMT

If you find yourself with extra time on your hands, now is the perfect time to start or review your estate plan. We are happy to continue to assist our clients with task-even during the current crisis.

Under Governor Laura Kelly’s executive order 20-20, notaries and witnesses can temporarily act via audio-video communication technology. This allows our clients to execute Wills, Trusts and other estate planning documents through Zoom and other audio-video communication technology. The MyCase law practice management software used by The Fleming Law Firm, LLC provides for all documents to be scanned and viewed without in office conferences or one on one meetings. You can complete your entire estate plan from the comfort of your own home.

Please feel free to contact us at 620-230-0832 if you would like more information.

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The importance of an operating agreement

Mon, 25 Nov 2019 03:28:00 GMT

Creating a business is an exciting endeavor. You, either on your own or with other partners, create an idea, come up with a company name and decide to register the company as a limited liability company within your state. These are all important steps in forming a new business, but perhaps one of the most important steps that is oftentimes overlooked is the formation of a signed operating agreement between the members of the limited liability company.

The operating agreement is essentially the rules of engagement for members. It creates rules for members to live by, such as: adding investors; distribution of profits; management of the business; withdrawal of members or dissolution of the business. It creates formality for the business and the members of that business.

Whether you are a new business in the early stages or one that has been around for years, the establishment of an operating agreement is important. Take the time to establish an operating agreement today with your members, because having these discussions today will avoid the headache when misunderstandings or disagreements among members occur later.

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Qualified Charitable Distributions from an IRA

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 15:59:00 GMT

If you have a tax-deferred individual retirement account (IRA) and you are age 70 1/2 or older, the IRS requires you to withdraw a certain amount from your IRA each year. This is called a required minimum distribution, or RMD, and it increases your total taxable income. However, if the IRA distribution goes directly to a charity, it is tax-free up to $100,000 per year. The IRS refers to this nontaxable distribution as a qualified charitable distribution.

For more information on qualified charitable distributions call the office for an appointment.
Please also remember the Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas on December 3, 2019 and Match Day 2019.

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Executor – The importance of choosing the right person

Mon, 08 Oct 2018 01:00:00 GMT

An executor is a fiduciary, who upon your passing, is in charge of handling your estate. This role can involve a great deal of responsibility, including finding and accounting for your assets and liabilities, representing your estate to the Court (with the assistance of legal counsel), filing final tax returns and assist in contacting beneficiaries of your estate and distributing assets to those beneficiaries. Choosing the right person is something that involves a lot of thought and consideration when working to complete your estate plan.

Because of the magnitude of work involved, it is important that you pick an executor that understands finances and is versed on the responsibilities involved in managing an estate. It is also important that you pick someone that will outlive you and will have the energy and capacity to manage your estate at the time of your death. Making sure that the person will have the time necessary to commit to the work ahead in managing an estate is also an important factor to consider when choosing an executor for your estate. Location is also an important factor to consider when choosing an executor. It is important that the executor is close in proximity to the estate because they will need the ability and flexibility to manage the assets of the estate. Having someone that lives across the country from the physical location of the estate assets is not a good fit. Finally, it is important that your executor is familiar with you, your beliefs and values and is familiar with the makeup of your family.

Choosing an executor is an important decision that can impact your estate and your beneficiaries. When beginning the process of completing your estate plan, sit down with your attorney and discuss the various issues surrounding your estate before finalizing your decision.

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Estate Plan Review

Wed, 10 Jan 2018 22:51:00 GMT

The start of a new year is a great time to pull out your estate plan or begin talking about your estate plan. Things to review include the following:
1. Would my estate have estate tax issues if something happened to me or my spouse today?
2. Do the people or corporate fiduciaries you and/or your spouse have designated as Successor Trustees still make sense?
3. Have we properly funded our trusts and titled our assets?
4. Do we need to make changes to the designated guardians of our children?
5. Are we comfortable with the designated beneficiaries of our estate?

Estate planning doesn’t have to be a difficult and cumbersome process. It should add security and peace of mind to you and your spouse to know that you have addressed issues that may arise with your assets, children and beneficiaries. It will also add ease of transition for your loved ones if an unexpected death or accident should happen to you or your spouse.

Call The Fleming Law Firm, LLC at 620-230-0832 or visit us at www.fleming-lawfirm.com to set up an appointment for a comprehensive review of your estate plan or to start discussing options for creating your plan.

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Simple Estate Planning Tips: Pay on Death Accounts (POD)

Tue, 08 Aug 2017 20:00:00 GMT

Keeping things simple for loved ones is the number one request I hear from my estate planning clients. This is part one of a short series designed to highlight some easy estate planning tips that can help keep things simple for families at the time of a loved one’s death.

What is Probate?

In a nutshell, when a person dies, their property is known as an “estate.” With a little simple planning, most if not all estate property can pass directly to the intended beneficiary (ies) without going through probate. Probate is the court process designed to divide property and pay final expenses at death. The problem with probate is that it can be complicated, lengthy, and expensive.

Designating a POD Account

Funds held in bank accounts can be normally be kept out of the probate process by designating bank accounts as “pay on death accounts.” Clients s imply notify their bank of who they would like to inherit the funds in the account upon their death. There is no limit on the amount of money, the money is quickly transferred at death, and designating a beneficiary costs nothing. While the account owner is alive, the beneficiary has no right to the funds-only at death will the funds be paid. This piece of planning can easily be done by an individual on their own, or with a little assistance from a legal professional. It is important to remember that your legal obligations to a spouse, or creditor, cannot be avoided by the use of a POD account; however, for most, this does not present an issue.

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What to Do When a Loved One Dies

Thu, 01 Jun 2017 21:51:00 GMT

When a loved one dies, not only does the family have to deal with the emotion of losing their loved one, the family must also deal with the overwhelming responsibility of closing out the person’s financial life. The following is a list of things that the family and loved ones must deal with after a person’s death:
1. Get multiple copies of death certificates. The family will need multiple copies of death certificates to provide to banks, the register of deeds, lawyers and social security offices. A funeral director should be able to help you with obtaining these documents.
2. Notify your local Social Security Office of the death of your loved one. This will stop all benefit payments and prevent the over-payment of benefits.
3. Contact the deceased person’s employer or former employer to determine if there are any pensions or death benefits for the deceased employee.
4. Notify all life insurance companies to determine if there is a death benefit associated with any life insurance policy on the life of the deceased.
5. Terminate all auto or disability insurance policies.
6. Contact a probate attorney. In the State of Kansas, a Last Will and Testament must be filed with the court within 6 months from the date of death or it is no longer valid. Although it is not always necessary to open an estate with the court for the deceased, it is very important to have an attorney review the deceased person’s estate to determine whether court intervention is necessary. If the deceased person held all his/her assets in a Trust, it is still important to retain an attorney to review the Trust and insure that it is compliance with state law.
7. If you are named as Administrator or Executor of the estate, it is important for that person to obtain all bills and account statements to make sure they are included in any estate of the deceased.
8. Close all credit card accounts for the deceased.
9. Contact a tax preparer to insure that all final returns are filed.

Losing a loved one at any age is a difficult process to go through. It can become even more difficult when the finances and the estate of the deceased are ignored.

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Business Consultation

Mon, 27 Apr 2015 21:32:00 GMT

An ounce of prevention truly is worth a pound of cure. Entrepreneurs and seasoned businesses alike may benefit from business consultation.

Business consultation is often a step in the business formation process. A budding entrepreneur will benefit from consultation to help the business owner discover what level of risk the company can bear, and what business structure best plans to minimize risk while maximizing profits.

Existing businesses will also benefit from consultation, especially when contemplating expansion. Taking on additional investors, locations, or services results in a shift of risk and anticipated profit. Businesses will also benefit from consultation when considering a significant change in its strategic plan, or for that matter, creating an initial strategic plan.

An experienced and qualified business attorney, one who has both a legal and financial background, can provide business consultation services in all of these situations. Truly, a small investment now in business consultation will likely prevent heartache in the future, and provides business clients additional opportunities that may not be readily apparent.

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Stretch IRA

Mon, 20 Apr 2015 13:23:00 GMT

An estate planning concept that is applied to extend the life of an Individual Retirement Account is referred to as a “stretch” IRA. The benefits of a “stretch” IRA are that it extends the tax deferred growth of a persons IRA and provides for 2nd, 3rd or 4th generations to benefit from this asset. Contact your estate planning professional to learn more about the benefits of this estate planning tool.

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Protecting your child’s future

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 03:41:00 GMT

Having children is one of the greatest rewards in life but it also comes with many responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is completing an estate plan. Young couples don’t need elaborate estate plans but they should think about the following items when working on their estate plans: 1. Write a Will (including providing for guardians for young children); 2. Life Insurance; 3. Writing Durable Powers of Attorney; 4. Designating Contingent Beneficiaries of Retirement Accounts.

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