Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers
A Pa Last Will can grant your boss (Pa Executor) the ability to administer your Estate.
With respect to additional traits that your boss should possess (in addition to being able and willing), I have found that your boss (Pa Executor) should also be
- Honest
- Diplomatic.
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Execution
I provides a full range of services for wills: drafting, review, amendment, revocation, execution and probate. I provide reliable guidance for testators and executors.
My experience in the Pa Orphans Court, resolving issues related to the validity of wills, enables me to provide practical advice for testators from all walks of life. Similarly, my work in the formation of wills gives us keen insight into how executors should interpret various aspects of a will that may initially seem unclear.
Whether you are a testator formulating an estate plan or an executor implementing a decedent’s wishes, John B. Whalen, Jr. Esq. can simplify many complex aspects of the tasks before you. I offer pertinent and personal legal advice to obtain the results you need in a timely manner with the least stress possible.
Executing a valid will is rather simple; executing an effective will takes a bit more work. The probate court approves a will if it finds the document was executed
- intentionally and freely by a person of sound mind,
- is written in clear, unambiguous language and
- is signed and witnessed.
That’s really the easy part. To be effective, your will must be comprehensive, covering the full range of your worldly possessions and your deepest concerns, and contemplating various contingencies. I work closely with you to memorialize your intentions completely and instructing that they be carried out in the most efficient manner possible.
Once executed, your will remains your final statement of your intentions until you amend or revoke it. I recommend reviewing your will every three to five years and updating it to reflect your current wishes.
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Issues
Even in apparently straightforward estate cases, there are sometimes disputes between disappointed beneficiaries and the will’s executor. When representing executors, I strive for the utmost professionalism in negotiations and in the courtroom. Whether the issue is a will challenge or an accusation of mismanagement of estate assets, I advocate vigorously for the testator’s estate and the executor.
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Assets
A Pa Last Will only disposes of the assets that:
- you own in your individual name alone and
- possess no beneficiary designations (i.e., no tags).
Consequently, items
- owned jointly with another are controlled by property law (not Will law) and will pass to the joint owner(s) at your death, and
- items that have beneficiary designations will be controlled by contract law (not Will law) and pass to the designated beneficiaries at your death.
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Executors
Most executors have never probated a will; many are surprised to learn the decedent’s will named them as the responsible party. I provide indispensable service for executors who have no prior experience in the probate court on matters that include:
- Filing the will with the Pennsylvania probate court
- Developing the best strategy for settling the estate
- Finding and assembling assets
- Pay creditors and claimants
- Collecting amounts owed the estate
- Closing and opening bank accounts
- Transferring assets from the deceased to the estate
- Paying current and delinquent taxes as well as estate taxes
- Valuing, managing, preserving and liquidating the estate
- Locating beneficiaries
- Hiring experts, when appropriate
Executors can easily make mistakes due to inexperience, stress and hasty decisions. This can be costly, as executors can be held personally liable for beneficiaries’ losses. I guide executors through every step of the probate process, with reliable, detailed advice, so you can settle the testator’s estate as efficiently, quickly and easily as possible.
Choose your Executor with extreme care.
- Be aware of your Executor’s traits
- Be aware of the Estate’s Fiduciary Income Tax returns
- Be aware of the Decedent’s final Income Tax returns
As an Executor, please be aware that
- You can be held personally liable for unpaid taxes
- You should be careful of the advice you receive and what you hear
- You should ensure that the Income Tax returns were filed in your Estate
- With all of the recent talk of the Estate Tax, the Income Tax side is as vital
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Taxes
Pa Last Wills are extremely tax intensive
- It will begin with Estate Planning
- It will continue with the Wall’s vital tax clause
- It will impact the client’s Asset Titles
- It will extend through Probate
- It will impact the beneficiaries tax obligations
- It may resolve through the Estate Administration
- It can extend far beyond the Estate’s conclusion
Extremely likely is the fact that the tax returns required in Pa are
- The Pa Inheritance Tax Return
- The Federal Estate Tax Return (depending)
- The Decedent’s final Federal Income Tax Return
- The Decedent’s final Pennsylvania Income Tax Return
- The Estate’s Federal Fiduciary Income Tax Return(s)
- The Estate’s Pennsylvania Income Tax Return(s)
Bryn Mawr Pa Last Wills Lawyers – Misconception
The most common misconception that surrounds a Last Will is the process called Pa Probate and the seemingly universal assumption that it should be avoided at all costs.
- Virtually to the contrary, the word Probate is merely the Latin infinitive verb that means to prove.
- Although some states do have onerous probate procedures (where the avoidance of probate may be a prudent strategy), Pennsylvania does not.
- In fact, probating your Last Will in Pennsylvania is very simple.
Another very common misconception that surrounds a Pa Last Will is that it disposes of all of your assets at your death. Again, and virtually to the contrary, is the fact that your Pa Last Will only disposes of your assets:
- that are owned in your name alone and/or
- that have no beneficiary designations.
John B. Whalen, Jr., JD., LL.M., is an AV Peer Review Rated Preeminent 5.0 and Avvo Rated 10.0 Superb premier and prestigious Attorney and Counselor at Law.
His main office is located at 696 Pont Reading Road, Ardmore, PA, 19003, and he serves all surrounding counties, on all 7 days, from 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and on evenings, weekends, and holidays.
He can be reached by email at jw60297@me.com, and by telephone at 1-484-417-6244.
Mr. Whalen has achieved the AV Peer Review Rated Preeminent award from Martindale, AV Peer Judicial Preeminent award, the Avvo Rated Superb 10.00 award, the Avvo Rated Top Lawyer award, the Clients’ Choice Award, and the Top One Percent (1%) award.
He is the recipient of the Legum Magister Post-Doctorate Degree (LL.M.) in Taxation (from the Villanova University School of Law), a recipient of the American Jurisprudence Award in Wills, Trusts, and Estates (from the Widener University School of Law), and a recipient of the ABA-BNA Law Award for Academic Excellence (from the Widener University School of Law).