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Estate planning mistakes don’t announce themselves. They surface in the worst possible moments—when a loved one dies, when someone becomes incapacitated, when a family that expected unity finds itself in Wayne County Probate Court fighting over assets that should have transferred cleanly. The stakes are real. An invalid will means Michigan’s intestacy statutes—not your intentions—decide … Read more
When a Shelby Township widow spent fourteen months navigating Macomb County Probate Court after her husband’s unexpected passing, she wasn’t just dealing with grief. She was managing court deadlines, filing accountings, paying legal fees that climbed past $18,000, and watching her family’s financial details become part of the public record. Her husband had a will. … Read more
When someone passes away today, their estate almost certainly includes digital assets—email accounts, social media profiles, online banking, cryptocurrency, cloud-stored photos, and dozens of other accounts accumulated over a lifetime of internet use. For families in Macomb County and throughout Southeast Michigan, managing these digital assets during probate presents challenges that did not exist a … Read more
Most adult children assume their parents have estate planning handled. After all, your parents have always had things under control. They raised you, managed a household, built careers. Surely they’ve thought about what happens next. This assumption is where many Michigan families get hurt. The problem isn’t that parents don’t care about planning. It’s that … Read more
If something happened to you tomorrow, who would raise your children? More importantly, who has the legal authority to make that decision—you, or a Michigan probate judge who has never met your family? Without proper estate planning documents, the answer is the judge. Michigan law does not automatically transfer custody to grandparents, siblings, or anyone … Read more
Estate planning for blended families is not about choosing sides. It is about making deliberate legal decisions that protect everyone you love—because without those decisions, Michigan law will make them for you. The uncomfortable truth is this: a standard will designed for a traditional nuclear family almost always fails blended families. Verbal promises between spouses … Read more
That will you signed ten years ago? It might be working against your family right now. Life changes—marriages, divorces, new grandchildren, deaths, and shifting assets—but wills don’t update themselves. And in Michigan, an outdated will isn’t just a minor inconvenience. It’s a roadmap to probate disputes, unintended distributions, and family conflict in Wayne, Macomb, and … Read more
Life in Metro Detroit moves fast. Between work, family, and everything else demanding your attention, thinking about what happens after you’re gone probably falls pretty low on your to-do list. But here’s something that might change your perspective: without a proper estate plan, the state of Michigan decides who gets your home, your savings, and … Read more
If you’ve started thinking about protecting your family’s future, you’ve probably encountered two fundamental estate planning tools: wills and trusts. The question isn’t whether you need estate planning—it’s which approach actually accomplishes your goals under Michigan law. The answer is more nuanced than most people realize. A will alone won’t avoid probate in Michigan. A … Read more
As attorneys serving families throughout Troy, Shelby Township, and across Michigan, we’ve seen how difficult it can be when a loved one passes away without a will. Many people believe that if they die without making a will, everything will automatically go to their spouse or children without complication. But that isn’t always true. When … Read more