Passed by the legislature in the spring, House Bill 2548 established Oklahoma's new Uniform Power of Attorney act and went into effect on November 1st under Title 58. This act, which provides for more uniform power of attorney documents from state-to-state, mostly focuses on the financial power of attorney. Unfortunately though, through some drafting oversight, the… Continue reading What are these new change to Oklahoma’s power of attorney laws?
As most of you will be aware, the virus called COVID-19 or "coronavirus" has changed our everyday lives during this time. As of this post, more than 340,000 people in the United States have tested positive for the virus, and it has cause around 9500 deaths. Around the country, including in Oklahoma, courts are shut… Continue reading Estate Planning in time of COVID-19
What does the fiscal cliff agreement mean for my estate? The estate tax was a bit of a mixed bag – the $5 million dollar per person exemption was kept in place (and indexed for inflation continued) however the top rate is increased from 35% to 40% – effective yesterday. Other good news for estate… Continue reading What does the Fiscal Cliff Agreement mean for my estate?
There is currently a legal battle in the federal courts regarding a Federal law mandating that marriage is between a man and a woman. EdiTh Windsor challenged the federal law in DOMA (Defense Of Marriage Act) as unconstitutional on equal protection grounds. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York recently held… Continue reading Edith Windsor’s Fight for Same-Sex Marriage Recognition
Social Security and Medicare, are the two most expensive federal social programs, and it has been recently announced that they will run out of money three years earlier than original estimates indicated. Trustees estimated that Social Security will run out of funds in the year 2033, and Medicare will be insolvent in 2024. More and… Continue reading Federal Assistance Programs are Running Out of Money
One common question about wills and trusts is about joint or mutual wills. Many people ask attorneys why joint wills are never recommended by attorneys. The reason is not that attorneys want to get more of your money by drafting two wills instead of one. Also, most people may see it as an extra expense… Continue reading Why A Joint Will Is A Bad Idea.
There is a popular trend among the states right now in estate planning law to allow people to make preparations for their pets in their will or trusts. Oklahoma has recently joined the trend. Oklahoma now allows pet trusts since a relatively recent House Bill1641 that was signed into law and became effective August 27,… Continue reading Estate Planning for Pets! Oklahoma Pet Trusts.
We live in a great country. In large part, this is due to the great sacrifice that our veterans have made, and the sacrifices that men and women in uniform make every day. Statistics say that one in two Americans will need long-term care. There are many ways to curtail the financial burden that long-term… Continue reading Estate Planning for Veterans
The Supreme Court of the United States' (SCOTUS) October session started yesterday, October 3rd. I was looking forward to this term, since there are a lot of interesting and important cases coming up on the Court's docket. There are 48 cases on the Court's docket thus far. There are, however, plenty of important cases being… Continue reading SCOTUS
Welcome to Tulsa Estate Planning Blog, created by the offices of the Skillern Law Firm, PLLC in Tulsa, Oklahoma. If you've read our profile over there on the right, then you already know a little about us and a little about what we want this blog to be about. Penni Skillern, Esq. has had a… Continue reading Welcome to the Tulsa Estate Planning Blog and the Skillern Law Firm!
