By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. March 2018. The bell on the outside doorknob jangled, startling the attorney out of his reverie. It had been a long day, and there was another client appointment pending. He straightened, stretched and strode to the waiting room. A...
By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. May 2015. “But I heard that the nursing home took everything when you went in. That’s what happened to my grandmother – she went in and they told her she had to sell everything and give it to them.” The attorney nodded. “That was one...
By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. April 2015. “Let’s talk about uncomplicating your estate plan. “When your plan was created in 2005, the federal estate tax exemption had just risen to $1.5 million. The Maryland estate tax exemption was $1.0 million. Do you have any idea...
By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. March 2015. First, the phone call: “Can you look over our wills and trusts? It’s been a few years, and we want somebody to make sure they’re up-to-date.” Certainly. Let’s get together. Next week? The meeting. “We had this done about ten...
By Tim Barkley. March 2013. Now that you’ve set up your living trust, you need to feed it to make it grow. In legal parlance, you need to “fund” your trust. The benefits of a living trust – probate avoidance, privacy, efficiency, estate tax avoidance – may be...
