NBI

From Event: Estate Administration: Top Mistakes to Avoid, held June 2017.

Program Description

Course Content

Continuing Education Credit

Agenda / Content Covered

1. EARLY MISTAKES THAT CAN DERAIL THE ENTIRE ADMINISTRATION
   8:30 - 9:30, Alyssa E. Pockell
   
   1. The Questions Not Asked (Special Needs Beneficiaries, Disclaimer Possibilities, Gifting Options, etc.)
   2. Choosing the Wrong Form of Administration
   3. Commencing an Estate When One is Not Needed and Vice Versa
   4. Not Understanding Homestead and Devise Restrictions
   5. Using Pro Forma Forms and Filing Mistakes
   6. Not Factoring in Family Dynamics
   7. Surprise Grantor's Will/Beneficiary Changes
   8. Affidavit of Heirship Mistakes
   9. Testate vs. Intestate Administration
   10. Not Giving Proper Notice
2. INSUFFICIENT KNOWLEDGE OF THE ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROCESS AND RULES
   9:30 - 10:15, Alyssa Graham
   1. State Inheritance Laws
   2. Local Probate Court Rules and Practices
   3. Key Steps in Estate Administration (Process and Timeline)
   4. Ascertainment of Heirs
3. INVENTORY, APPRAISEMENT AND CREDITOR CLAIM PITFALLS
   10:30 - 11:15, Alyssa E. Pockell
   1. Problems with Marshalling Assets and Securing Accounts
   2. Improper Treatment of Assets
   3. Disclaimer Mistakes
   4. What Back Tax Returns Can Tell You
   5. Things Overlooked in the Decedent's Mail
   6. Retaining Assets ("Daddy's Stock")
   7. In Securing Personal Property
   8. Verifying Assets and Liabilities
   9. Not Recognizing the Need for a Consulting Professional (CPA, CFP, etc.)
   10. Mishandling Joint Assets
   11. Mistakes in Preparing Inventory
   12. Common Creditor Claims Process Issues
   13. Valuation and Appraisal Oversights
4. PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE PROBLEMS
   11:15 - 12:00, Donald H. Sienkiewicz
   1. Having a Client Qualify as Executor or Administrator Needlessly
   2. Failure to Educate Executor on Fiduciary Liability
   3. Co-Fiduciaries: Pros and Cons
   4. Failing to File Form 56
   5. Improperly Paying Expenses
   6. What to Do When Executor Refuses to Carry Out Duties
   7. Mistakes That Can Lead to Fiduciary Personal Liability
5. LEGAL ETHICS OVERSIGHTS AND OVERSTEPS
   1:00 - 2:00, Donald H. Sienkiewicz
   1. Representing Executor as Fiduciary vs. Heir
   2. Inaccurate Fees
   3. Overlooking Conflicts of Interest
   4. Keeping the Client in the Dark
6. TAX ISSUES AND HOW TO PREVENT THEM
   2:00 - 3:00, Alyssa Graham
   
   1. Missing Tax Filing Deadlines
   2. Failing to Make the Portability Election
   3. Unfiled Income Tax Returns
   4. Mistakes in Filing Fiduciary Returns
   5. Overlooking Taxes, Penalties and Interest Owed
   6. Missing State Estate Tax Filings
   7. Income Taxes Payable by the Estate During the Period of Estate Administration
7. DISTRIBUTION, FINAL ACCOUNTING, AND ESTATE CLOSING MISTAKES
   3:15 - 4:00, Written and Presented by Nelson A. Raust in Manchester and Joy V. Riddell in Portsmouth.
   1. Improperly Interpreting Distribution Provisions of the Will
   2. Making Non-Pro Rata Distributions
   3. Failure to Consider Spouse and Minor Children Rights
   4. Making Distributions Too Soon or in Wrong Amounts
   5. Failure to Transfer the Assets Fully and Correctly
   6. Real Estate Property Tax Errors
   7. Missteps When Quoting a Fee
   8. Failure to Timely Render Accountings and Close the Estate
   9. Problems with Releases from Beneficiaries
8. DISPUTES AND LITIGATION ISSUES
   4:00 - 4:40, Written and Presented by Nelson A. Raust in Manchester and Joy V. Riddell in Portsmouth.

ALYSSA GRAHAM is an attorney with the Bedford law firm of Ansell & Anderson P.A. She focuses her practice on estate planning, trust and estate administration, probate, and related tax planning. Ms. Graham received her B.A. degree from Boston University, her J.D. degree from Suffolk University Law School and her LL.M. degree in taxation from Boston University School of Law. She is licensed to practice in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Ms. Graham is a member of the New Hampshire Bar Association's Trust & Estate Law Section and the New Hampshire Estate Planning Council. (Manchester and Portsmouth locations)

ALYSSA E. POCKELL is a partner with the law firm of Forman, Clark, Pockell & Associates, P.A. She assists clients from her firm's Londonderry, Concord, and Portsmouth offices in New Hampshire, as well her offices in Burlington, Braintree and Newton, Massachusetts. Her practice focuses primarily on estate planning, probate, and trust administration. Ms. Pockell lectures frequently to financial and tax professionals on estate planning, special needs trust planning and probate issues. She received her B.A. degree from New England College in political science and her J.D. degree from Suffolk University Law School. Ms. Pockell is a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association and the New Hampshire Bar Association. (Manchester and Portsmouth locations)

NELSON A. RAUST is a director in the law firm of Ransmeier & Spellman P.C., with offices in Concord, New Hampshire and Andover, Maryland. Since 1988, Mr. Raust has focused much of his practice on elder law and disability issues, assisting seniors and their families with issues relating to Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, guardianships, nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Mr. Raust also prepares special needs trusts for families with adult or minor children with special needs. He is a frequent speaker on estate planning, Medicaid planning, special needs trusts and probate issues. Mr. Raust earned his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Rochester; his J.D. degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law; and his LL.M. degree from Boston University School of Law. He is a member of the New Hampshire (Elder Law, Estate Planning and Probate Section) and Manchester bar associations, the New Hampshire Estate Planning Council, and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. Mr. Raust also is a founding member and incorporator of the New Hampshire Chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). (Manchester location)

JOY V. RIDDELL is of counsel with Robinson, Boesch, Sennott & Masse, PA, where she concentrates in income, gift, estate and generation-skipping tax planning for high net worth individuals and advises non-profit and tax-exempt organizations. She received her B.A. degree from the University of New Hampshire, her J.D. degree from Suffolk University and her LL.M. degree, in taxation, from Boston University. Ms. Riddell is a member of the New Hampshire and American (member, Tax Section) bar associations. She is licensed to practice in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts. She was the founding member and director of the New Hampshire Women's Bar Association and has served as a member of the Gender Equality Committee of the New Hampshire Bar Association. Ms. Riddell has written a number of published articles and frequently lectures on tax exempt organizations and basic estate planning. (Portsmouth location)

DONALD H. SIENKIEWICZ is the principal attorney at the Estate Preservation & Planning Law Office in Milford, New Hampshire. He focuses his legal practice on estate planning, asset protection, and elder law. His practice also includes advising clients on tax-efficient wealth management, business succession planning, and long-term care planning through the use of revocable and irrevocable trusts, limited liability companies, and other legal arrangements. Mr. Sienkiewicz is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the New Hampshire Bar Association Elder Law, Estate Planning, and Probate Section. He is licensed to practice in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Mr. Sienkiewicz earned both of his B.A. degrees, magna cum laude, in economics and environmental policy, at Boston University and his J.D. degree at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston. (Manchester and Portsmouth locations)

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