Understandably, copier security is very concerning; nonetheless it’s reality. My experience with the Canon product line-up has shown that Canon take security seriously. Their imageRUNNER and imagePRESS line of products ship standard with a One-time Overwrite feature built-in, meaning that each time a page is copied or printed, the Hard Drive automatically overwrites the previous […]

What if I were to tell you that you may be inadvertently disclosing all of your clients’ personal information… asset lists, deeds, account numbers, social security numbers… the list goes on and on. Would that get your attention? This CBS News report certainly got my attention. It turns out that most digital copiers manufactured since […]

What happens when an unmarried couple ends a long-term relationship? It’s not uncommon for a palimony claim to be filed, with one partner attempting to enforce an agreement that the other partner would provide him or her with long-term financial support. What happens when that relationship is not ended by choice, but by the death […]

I recently attended the annual convention of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) with Guy Kawasaki as the keynote speaker. His new book, Enchantment-The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds and Actions just came out and provided the theme of his talk. What can estate planning attorneys or funeral providers learn from this former […]

“In the internet’s standard e-mail protocol SMTP, a bounce message, is an automated electronic mail message from a mail system informing the sender of another message about a delivery problem. The original message is said to have bounced.” – Wikipedia What are these bounced e-mail messages trying to tell me? Most bounced e-mail reports will tell […]

Outside of the probate process, is there a way to seek redress in a situation where an intended beneficiary loses an inheritance because of the acts of a third party? For instance, what happens when a relative induces Dad to revoke his Will, leaving his son with only an intestate share of Dad’s estate, rather […]

We all know the importance of advance directives in making clients’ healthcare wishes known.  Unfortunately, research tells us that creating such documents does not necessarily ensure that their wishes will be known when it counts. Consider this: According to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, advance directives were not available in […]

In my last post, I highlighted a recent discussion on our Academy Listserv, and talked about the concerns of some of our Members who choose not to provide their clients with electronic copies of estate planning documents. On the other side of the argument are our Members who do provide electronic copies to their clients, […]

Can a will be contested while the testator is still alive? Different states answer this question in varying ways. The traditional view is that a will contest is not “ripe” until a testator dies, because a will does not “speak” until death. In the past, courts have refused to hear pre-mortem will contests because to […]

Seventeen years ago, a test was done using a direct mail campaign to invite high net worth consumers to attend a social event in Tampa, Florida. In this case, a financial advisor for a very large institution was expecting 4 to 5 couples to show up, as he and many others had tried similar offerings […]