return to top

DEEDS

There are different types of deeds, depending on who the owner is that is transferring real estate, what kinds of warranties are being made about the title, and when the transfer is to be effective, such as upon death. There are survivorship deeds, transfer on death deeds, fiduciary deeds, warranty deeds, and quitclaim deeds. Each serves a different purpose. These deeds are recorded in the county recorder’s office.

return to top

TITLE EXAMINATIONS

Title examinations are done to determine what liens and other title problems might exist with property being sold. Title insurance can be obtained to have an insurance company pay you if problems develop sometime in the future with the title to real estate. Closing the purchase and sale involves getting all the documents signed and recorded.

return to top

EVICTIONS

Landlords and tenants sometimes have problems. When the rent isn’t paid when it is due or the tenant is violating the lease agreement the landlord may want to bring an eviction action. Sometimes the person renting the property is upset that the heat doesn’t work, or the plumbing doesn’t work. The tenant has the right to pay funds into the court handling eviction actions.

return to top

ANNEXATIONS

Property owners sometimes want to obtain city services such as electricity or sewer or water. The city may sometimes make it a condition of getting services that the property owner be annexed. A survey is done and the plat is filed with the city, the township and the county commissioners. When all done, the property is now in the city and subject to the requirements of other property owners in the city, such as payment of income taxes and voting in the city.

return to top

COMMERCIAL LAW

Businesses come in all shapes and sizes. Some are sole proprietors, others are partnerships, while others are limited liability companies or corporations. Some businesses are required to file documents with the Secretary of State of Ohio. Other issues such as the use of a name or trademark also need to be filed with the Secretary of State. Collection of money owed to businesses is sometimes difficult and it may be necessary to file a lawsuit to obtain a court order that shows the money is owed and then trying to get the money is often difficult.

return to top

DOMESTIC RELATIONS

Divorces are started when one party wants a marriage ended. Dissolutions can sometimes be worked out when both parties agree on the details connected with the end of a marriage like who gets what property, who pays what bills, how will any children be cared for and supported and whether any alimony will be appropriate. No two cases are alike. Some can be horrible experiences for everyone concerned. When a case is begun, there is no telling where it might end up. The courts are using mediation in many of these cases to try and help the parties to reach sensible decisions regarding their court cases.

Paternity cases arise when a child is born and it is necessary to take steps to have a court resolve the issue of whether a certain person is the father of the child. With modern genetic tests, this matter is usually resolved in the laboratory when the tests are completed, and the court may confirm those results and make provisions for child support and visitation with the parents.

Contested custody cases for children come up during divorces and later on when there has been a substantial change in circumstances that would lead a court to decide that it is in the best interests of the child to have custody changed.

return to top

ESTATE PLANNING

Simplicity is a sensible goal in estate planning. It is important to try and keep your financial affairs and your estate plans simple, yet adequate to accomplish the goals. Here are some keys to think about.

If you own stock, put all your stock in a brokerage account. There is little advantage to keeping stock certificates in your home or safe deposit box. They can get lost, and then you have to post a bond to get them replaced. Plus, when stock is held in a brokerage account you will get accustomed to a monthly report of what assets you have, what kind of yield you are getting, and what changes in value take place over a long period.
Everyone should have a Durable Power of Attorney and a Health Care Power of Attorney. You never know when one might be needed.

You can set up your affairs so you can avoid probate, but you should still have a will to take care of things that might go through probate.

We all grow older, and as we get older, our circumstances change. Some older people are willing to accept the changes in their lives. Others hold on and resist to the bitter end any changes in their lives that reflect the real world. It is not always advisable to remain in your home. Try to prepare yourself and your family for what might happen by talking about possible changes before they happen. If a move to an assisted living center is coming, it is better to do it before you think you need to. It is a harder transition if someone feels forced rather than it being a choice. A positive attitude is a wonderful help. A negative attitude will take its toll on all members of the family.

Make funeral plans, and make arrangements to pay for them now. If that is something you aren’t up to, then at least give someone an idea of what kind of funeral arrangements you would prefer. It makes it a whole lot easier on everyone.

Don't throw away your income tax returns immediately after filing. Keep them for at least 5 years or longer.

If you do investing, only use a reputable broker. Do not get involved with a fly-by-night individual. There are crooks out there who will take your money and not invest it for you, but will spend it on themselves.

Trusts become more important where combined assets exceed $500,000.00 or so. Under that, keep it simple.

Different people have different estate planning needs. You may think that because a close friend has a trust, that you should also have one. There are attorneys who seem to recommend a trust for every client who attends the seminar and decides to talk with the attorney afterward. The price will usually be excessive. We have seen some estate planners who do separate deeds for each parcel of real estate being transferred to the trust. This is a senseless and wasteful practice. All the parcels being transferred to a trust can be on one deed, unless the parcels are in different counties. For example, if you had five parcels on five separate deeds, you would pay 5 times $28.00 for each 2 page deed. That would cost $140.00 in recording fees. If the parcels were all on one deed it would only be $28.00.

return to top

WILLS AND THE PROBATE COURT

A will only affects certain property. It does not affect life insurance policies on your life naming someone else as beneficiary.
A will does not affect joint & survivorship accounts, POD (pay on death) or TOD (transfer on death) accounts, real and personal property owned as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, pension & profit sharing plans naming someone else as beneficiary, or trusts set up by you.
The probate estate is administered in the probate court of the county where an individual resides. When someone resides in two places, the one he or she resides in most is usually considered the place of residence. Creditors make claims against the assets in the probate estate. The probate court is open to the public.
Do you have any special funeral or burial instructions? While you could put those instructions in a will, a better procedure is to make your arrangements ahead of time with a funeral home.
A will can cover many different topics. You can make provisions for surviving spouse, children, parents/special friends, guardians of minor children, charitable provisions, cancellation of debts or the collection of debts. You can establish a trust for yourself or spouse or children by will. You can disinherit a child, although this is not usually a good idea. You can make provisions for continuing or liquidating a business. You can provide life estates to certain people and remainders to others. You can name your executor(s) and alternate(s) to handle your estate and make provisions for posting or waiving the requirement for a bond to be posted by the executor.

return to top

TRUSTS

Trusts come in various sizes and serve different purposes. Assets held in a trust avoid going through the Probate Court’s administration. They can be helpful in allowing for the efficient care of assets and taking care of individuals who may not be able to deal with the duties of properly taking care of property and expenses. They can be set up in a Will or be an agreement signed while the person(s) setting up the trust(s) are living. Assets need to be transferred into the name of the trustee who takes the responsibility to do what the trust says should be done with the trust assets.

POWER OF ATTORNEY

Would you want someone to be able to take care of your affairs if you became seriously ill or disabled? If you do nothing about it, a guardian might have to be appointed by the probate court to take care of your affairs. Or you could name someone now to act as your power of attorney. Or you could set up a trust with a trustee to act for you.

Do you have strong feelings about not being kept alive by unusual, artificial or heroic means? You can have a living will or a durable power of attorney for health care to give guidance to your family, doctor, and pastor. A living will is a document that you fill out and give to your health care provider with specific instructions about dealing with certain end of life issues. A health care power of attorney gives someone you name the authority to make decisions regarding your health care in the event you are unable to communicate with your doctor. This document can have very specific instructions or can give general guidance to the person you name as your agent. You can name a backup agent in case the first person named is not available to be consulted.

Do you wish to donate your body or organs for transplant purposes or for medical research? This can be addressed on your driver’s license or in your health care power of attorney.

return to top

ESTATE TAXES

Even though someone may have a small probate estate administered by the probate court, there may be a problem that is caused by estate taxes on property not in the probate estate, like the J&S property, TOD or POD property, or life insurance, annuities, IRA’s and other retirement plans.

Transfers to a spouse as a general rule have few, if any, estate tax consequences. The taxable estate includes just about everything you own or have owned less debts and expenses paid by the estate. An Ohio estate tax return needs to be filed when the amount of the taxable estate is over $333,333. A federal estate tax return is required when the taxable estate is over $2,000,000 for individuals dying in 2008. It will be $3,500,000 in 2009 and will be repealed in 2010. But in 2011 it will be reinstated back to $1,000,000, unless congress changes the law.

return to top

GIFTS

There are times where planning and action are not needed, just as there are times when something should be done, either by making a gift, or series of gifts that will help reduce or eliminate the payment of estate taxes. Each case is different and depends on the amounts involved, the family's personalities, and many other kinds of factors.