By Tim Barkley. September 2025. It’s sad when folks trying to do the right thing mess up and hurt the ones they love the most. Take, for example, the will that left everything “to my children, or their heirs, per stirpes.” (Per stirpes is the term for distributing a...
By Tim Barkley. August 2025. Q: What happens if I don’t write a will? A: Your “estate” – everything you own that has no living joint owner or beneficiary – will be administered through “probate” and distributed under state “intestacy” statutes. Sometimes that’s OK,...
By Tim Barkley. July 2025. Susan sat across the table, flipping through a manila file. “I think I have everything you asked me to bring.” The lawyer flipped through the proffered folder. “To see if your mom qualifies for Medicaid, we need to know what she owns and...
By Tim Barkley. June 2025. Q: My child is headed to college. Is there anything I need to think about? A: Your child needs financial and medical powers of attorney (“POA’s”). Even though you’re the Mom, once your child becomes an adult his or her financial and medical...
By Tim Barkley. May 2025. Probate. The word has achieved a Dickensian notoriety conjuring up greedy lawyers, helpless widows and children, and unscrupulous creditors. The avoidance of probate is now a cottage industry, carried on in the back offices of lawyers and...
By Tim Barkley. March 2025. “I don’t need a power of attorney. My spouse and I own everything jointly.” “My daughter is on all my accounts, so I don’t need a power of attorney.” “I’m not letting anybody take control over me! I’m not signing that paper!” “I don’t want...
