Creditor Has No Claim to Wrongful Death Claim Settlement

On June 30, 2022   /   Elder Law West Des Moines, Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
creditor claims

On June 15, 2022, the Court of Appeals of Iowa issued an opinion in the matter of the Estate of Kevin L. Barz, Brad Staley and Susan Staley, Appellants (No. 21-0563). The case involves Kevin Barz and his spouse who both died in a motor vehicle accident. The Barz’s were survived by three children who were the co-executors of the estate. The co-executors filed a wrongful death action against the tortfeasor and his insurance company. A settlement was reached with the tortfeasor for $622,264.15. The settlement provided that it “was paid solely as compensation for the individual loss of consortium”.

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Iowa Supreme Court Case on new Guardianship Act

On February 2, 2022   /   Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
iowa guardianship law

On January 14, 2022, the Iowa Supreme Court issued an Opinion in the Matter of the Guardianship of L.Y.  The case is the first interpretation of the new Guardianship Act which went into effect on January 1, 2020. The case involved young parents who consented to a temporary guardianship for the paternal grandparents to serve as guardians of their five-year-old daughter so that the daughter could be placed on the grandparents’ medical insurance and easily travel with them on vacation.  The guardianship was also to provide an opportunity for the parents to complete their divorce and to establish stable lives. 

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Tortious-Interference-With-Inheritance Claim

On September 27, 2021   /   Business Law West Des Moines, Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
Distribution of Property

On June 11, 2021, the Iowa Supreme Court issued an opinion in the case of David Buboltz and Donna Reece, vs. Patricia Birusingh, Estate of Cletis C. Ireland, and Kumari Durick. Cletis Ireland died in March 2016 at age 92.  She was an only child, was never married, and had no children.  At the time of her death she owned a family century farm on which she had resided most of her life.  In 2001, the decedent executed a Will that divided her farm in equal shares to David Buboltz, a farmer who had cash rented eighty acres of the

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Details on the Iowa Inheritance Tax Repeal

On June 23, 2021   /   Elder Law West Des Moines, Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Probate Law West Des Moines, Taxation Law West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
iowa inheritance tax repeal

In the past week, the Governor signed Senate File 619 which repeals the Iowa inheritance tax over the next five years.  Numerous attempts have been made over the past decade to eliminate or modify the Iowa inheritance tax.  Pursuant to the bill, for persons dying in the year 2021, the Iowa inheritance tax will be reduced by twenty percent.  For persons dying in the year 2022, the Iowa inheritance tax will be reduced by forty percent.  For persons dying in the year 2023, the Iowa inheritance tax will be reduced by sixty percent.  For persons dying in the year 2024,

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Federal and State Income Tax Deadlines Extended

On April 23, 2021   /   Business Law West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Taxation Law West Des Moines  
2021 state and federal tax deadlines

The IRS has extended the filing and payment deadline to May 17, 2021 for 2020 Federal income tax returns.  The extension applies to individuals, businesses, trusts and estates.  By extending the deadline to May 17, the IRS is automatically postponing to the same date the time for individuals to make year 2020 contributions to IRAs (Traditional and Roth), health savings accounts, Archer Medical Savings Accounts and Coverdell education savings accounts.  In addition, for tax year 2017 Federal income tax returns, the normal April 15 deadline to claim a refund has been extended to the new date of May 17, 2021. 

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Recent Judgment on Will Challenges During Lifetime

On March 26, 2021   /   Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Probate Law West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
interferance with inheritance

On January 21, 2021, the Iowa Supreme Court issued an opinion in the case of In The Matter of the Guardianship and Conservatorship of Vernon D. Radda v. Washington State Bank, as Conservator for Vernon D. Radda.  The issue in the case was whether a prospective heir can bring a declaratory judgment action under Section 633.637 (2019) of the Iowa Code, to determine the validity of wills before the testator dies.  The Ward executed wills in 1992 and 2015 while he was under a voluntary Conservatorship and without any judicial determination of his testamentary capacity.  The sister of the Ward

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Can Deathbed Instructions Amend a Trust?

On January 27, 2021   /   Elder Law West Des Moines, Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
inheritance tax code iowa

On October 7, 2020, the Iowa Court of Appeals issued a Ruling in the matter of the Sandahl Trust (2017).  Craig Sandahl executed the Sandahl Trust which was a Revocable Grantor Trust in 1993.  The Trust was funded with substantially all of Craig Sandahl’s assets.  The Trust was last restated by a document dated August 14, 2017, which was two months before Craig Sandahl passed away. The Trust distributed assets to two groups of recipients.  One group was the “Descendant’s Trust” of which Craig’s children’s lineal descendants were the beneficiaries and the other group was given to the Community Foundation

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Final Regulations on Deductibility of Expenses of Estates and Non-Grantor Trusts

On October 27, 2020   /   Business Law West Des Moines, Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Taxation Law West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
business taxes, business tax deductions, deduction limits, business expense threshold limits, De Minimis Safe Harbor Expense Threshold

On September 21, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service issued final regulations in regard to the deductibility of expenses of estates and non-grantor trusts.  The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which was passed previously, bars individuals from claiming miscellaneous itemized deductions for the years 2018 through 2025.  After the passage of the TCJA, there are questions on how such barred itemized deductions would impact estates and non-grantor trusts. The final regulations state that deductions for costs which were paid or incurred in connection with the administration of an estate or trust and which would not have been incurred if the

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New Iowa Supreme Court Probate Case – Harold Youngblut vs. Leonard Youngblut

On June 26, 2020   /   Estate & Trust Administration, Estate Planning West Des Moines, Legal Resources West Des Moines, Probate Law West Des Moines, Will & Trusts West Des Moines  
probate law case iowa supreme court

On June 12, 2020, the Supreme Court of Iowa issued a decision in the Harold Youngblut vs. Leonard Youngblut case.  The case involves two brothers, Harold and Leonard Youngblut.  Their parent were Earl and Agnes Youngblut.  Earl and Agnes were the parents of twelve children, three of whom predeceased them.  Earl and Agnes formed a corporation, Youngblut Farmland Ltd. in 1980 and transferred most of their farm assets into the corporation with the exception of farm ground in Tama County known as the “South Farm”.  Both Harold and Leonard worked for the corporation until Leonard left in 1988 over a

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Payout of EIP Stimulus Checks to Deceased Individuals

On June 1, 2020   /   Legal Resources West Des Moines, Taxation Law West Des Moines  
payout of stimulus checks

There has been much discussion among lawyers as to the payment of Economic Impact Payments (EIP) stimulus checks to deceased individuals.  The checks are generally in the amount of $1,200.00 for each taxpayer.  The Internal Revenue Service has recently addressed the issue on the Question and Answer section of its website. The IRS states that a person who died before receipt of the payment does not qualify and the payment should be returned to the IRS.  The entire payment should be returned unless the payment was made to joint filers and one spouse was alive at the time of receipt

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