Estate planning frequently involves more than just having a Will. Living wills as well as durable powers of attorney for health care and finance protect your estate in case your are incapacitated, but not deceased.
A living will permits you to express your wishes regarding resuscitation and life maintaining measures in the event you later become incapable of communicating your desires. It can help you try to avoid what some believe to be an undignified existence by allowing you to decline medical treatment, food, and water if these things are “artificially” keeping you alive. The choice is yours to make and physicians will honor your wishes if the proper documents are submitted.
A durable power of attorney for health care, on the other hand, allows you to appoint another person to make decisions for you regarding your medical care in the event you cannot. This power is broader than the living will. It, too, covers situations where you may be terminally ill and need resuscitation or other life maintaining measures to stay alive. Your agent, or attorney-in-fact, can decline these treatments if you give them that power. It also applies to situations where a health care decision is required but you cannot make that decision yourself (i.e., you are unconscious as a result of injury). Your agent could authorize or decline medical treatment on your behalf.
A durable power of attorney for finance allows you to appoint another person to make decisions for you regarding your real and personal property. This power is broad and covers situations where you are terminally ill or unconscious as a result of injury, but still living. Your agent, or attorney-in-fact, can manage your financial affairs as you so wish.
If you decide to create either a living will or a durable power of attorney for health care and/or finance, you will need to consider several things before you complete the documents. You will have to provide the name and contact information for the individual(s) that you nominate to make decisions for you in the event that you cannot make them.
Be sure to inform the person you nominate of your wishes. You can permit or refuse to permit donation of your organs for transplant. You can also permit or refuse to permit donation of your body for scientific or educational purposes. Some people wish to spend their last days at home rather than in a hospital. Some people wish to nominate one person to act as their attorney-in-fact for health care and another for their finance. You can express your wishes regarding these issues in these documents. Finally, you can express your wishes about funeral arrangements.
With the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens and President Obama declaring he would like to have Stevens’ replacement confirmed before the court’s new term begins in October, people are discussing Federal Judges. Two questions keep circulating: whether there are different types of Federal Judges and how do they get selected.
There are seven types of Federal Judges: (1) Supreme Court justices, (2) court of appeals, (3) district judges, (4) U.S. Court of International Trade, (5) bankruptcy judges, (6) magistrate judges, (7) U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
Supreme Court justices, court of appeals, district judges and the U.S. Court of International Trade are established by Article III of the Constitution. Names of nominees are recommended by senators or sometimes members of the House. The President then makes his nominations. The Senate Judiciary Committee conducts confirmation hearings for each nominee. Article III Judges are appointed for life and never get a pay cut to exercise what the Constitution calls the “judicial power of the United States.” The reasoning behind this is to guaranty Article III Judges will never fear making politically or socially unpopular decisions.
There are no official requirements to become an Article III Judge. However, throughout U.S. History all were private attorneys, state judges, other federal court judges or law professors prior to their Article III nomination and confirmation.
Bankruptcy, magistrate, and U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judges are not Judges under Article III of the Constitution. These judges are appointed for specific terms and are not protected from a guarantied no pay reduction. There is a statutory requirement for bankruptcy and magistrate judges to be lawyers.
Bankruptcy judges are appointed by the majority of the US court of appeals to exercise jurisdiction over bankruptcy matters. Bankruptcy judges are appointed for 14 year terms and handle almost all bankruptcy matters.
Magistrate judges are appointed by the majority vote of the active district judges of the court to exercise jurisdiction over matters delegated by the district judges and assigned by statute. Magistrate judges are appointed for 8 year terms and their duties vary from court to court.
U.S. Court of Federal Claims are appointed by the President. U.S. Court of Federal Claims is a special court that hears claims for money damages in excess of $10,000 against the United States. U.S. Court of Claims judges are appointed for 15 year terms.
The option is always up to you. However, it’s a bad idea to waive notice in probate. Under the rules, heirs and legatees are permitted to consent to the appointment of a representative and then waive notice of hearings on the petition, rights to require formal proof of the Will and to contest the admission or denial of admission of the Will to probate, and notice of rights in independent administration.
Typically, probate matters involve family members who are also dealing with the loss of a loved one. To prevent family members from becoming long term litigants be open and upfront with one another. Knowledge is a powerful tool. Even in situations that involve family, keeping informed is important. It is a simple task to require notification of events. It is a difficult task to recreate the past to correct a wrong doing.
Often, representatives do not intend to make a mistake, but mistakes can happen anyway. By receiving notice of every event in probate, you have the ability to take an active role. Information such as listing a property with a real estate agent or letting it sit as a FSBO for a year is imperative for heirs and legatees to be aware of.
Representatives can not waive your notice rights for you and will not take issue with you wanting to be notified. Understanding that everyone deals with death differently does not change your need to ensure your loved ones intentions are honored. The best way for heir and legatees to honor their loved ones is to hold onto their rights and not waive notice.
The Illinois Bond Act applies to public construction projects. The 180 day notice is a condition precedent to the right to maintain an action under the Bond Act. That means that before you have the right to file an action you must give timely notice.
Any person having a claim for labor, material under the Bond Act will not have any such right of action unless he filed a verified notice of said claim with the officer, board, bureau or department awarding the contract, within 180 days after the last item or work or the furnishing of the last item of materials, and shall have furnished a copy of such verified notice to the contractor within 10 days of filing of the notice with the agency awarding the contract.
Compliance with the Bond Act’s six month post project completion limitations period is a jurisdictional requirement. Without having jurisdiction, the Court can not entertain your claim. The Act clearly states that no action shall be brought until the expiration of 120 days after the date of the last item of work or the furnishing of the last item of work or the furnishing of the lost item or materials, nor shall any action of any kind be brought later than 6 months after the acceptance by the State of political subdivision thereof of the building project or work.
General contract law is applied to bonded private construction projects. It is important as a subcontractor to beware of the contractual limitations to bring an action against a general contractors bond.
In these tough economic times, many people consider getting involved in a short sale of real property. However, most do not understand what it takes to close short on a piece of property. The term “short sale” for real estate means that the sale proceeds are less than the balance of the mortgage or mortgages for that real estate.
It takes a lot of time and effort to accomplish a successful short sale. Cooperation and hard work is needed. The seller and lender are both in tough positions. The seller can no longer afford their home and can not pay the mortgage. The lender has no desire to take the home or go through costly foreclosure proceedings.
The seller has to start the ball rolling by finding the right department and person within their lender to assist in this process. It takes many phone calls and letters to get a person with authority from the lender. Also, do not make the mistake of trying to go through the lenders mortgage work out department if you really just need to get out of the property and mortgage.
The seller has to provide the lender with many documents before lenders even consider the option of a short sale. Some of these documents include: (1) preliminary net sheet, (2) hardship letter, (3) proof of income and assets, (4) copies of bank statements, (5) comparative market analysis, and (6) letter of authorization.
The seller should contact a real estate agent, accountant and attorney. Many agents will reduce their commission amount on a listing that needs to sell short. Accountants can explain and go over the tax ramifications (which vary for each individual). Attorneys can help negotiate with the lender and buyer, determine if the loan qualifies for a deficiency judgment, work within foreclosure proceeding, and close the transaction.
Be aware that the lender is not in a hurry to agree to a short sale. The lender will take as much time as it wants and will periodically ask for more information. Lenders will only agree to a short sale if it makes financial sense.
The buyer has to have a lot of patience, be willing to cooperate with the lender and, most importantly, have the money to purchase the real property.
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