BACK TO BASICS

By Tim Barkley. December 2019. Billy and Joan had lived across town. He was her only child, and as she grew older, helped with her care. Joan, a widow, had just been admitted to a nursing home with dementia. Immediately after her admission to the home, Billy suddenly...

MOM’S TRUSTEE

By Tim Barkley. June 2019. The lawyer greeted Susan as she entered the office.  She waved a large maroon notebook.  “I think we might have found the trust.  Is that what this is?  It’s about a million pages long.  We were going through some boxes in the basement...

LOST TRUST

By Tim Barkley. May 2019. Susan sounded uncharacteristically jubilant on the phone: “Big news! Mary was picked up for a DUI and has disappeared! I don’t think she’ll be causing any more trouble.” “That’s a relief,” replied the lawyer. “We’ll...

WHAT DO I NEED?

What Do I need? February 2019. By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. The handshakes concluded, the Johnsons sit across from the lawyer. “We need to get wills. We’re both in our seventies, and we’ve never had a will. And we think we might need a trust.” Mrs. Johnson interjects,...

LESS COMPLICATING

Less Complicating. June 2018. By Timothy S. Barkley, Sr. 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. And we’re going on vacation and want to make sure everything is...