In estate planning, the term “Cestui Que” (pronounced sess-twee kay) refers to the beneficiary of a trust or insurance policy. While it may sound like legal jargon from another era, this centuries-old concept sits at the heart of one of the most controversial estate cases in recent memory. At the center of the storm is Luigi Mangione, an Ivy League graduate and the reported beneficiary of his grandmother’s multi-million-dollar estate, until a carefully worded clause may have changed everything. A Grandmother’s Estate Plan in Action Mary C. Mangione, a well-known philanthropist and matriarch of a wealthy family, left behind an estate valued between $30 million and $100 million, to be divided among her ten children and grandchildren. But Mary’s will included a critical stipulation: any beneficiary involved in serious criminal activity, particularly felonies or violent crimes, would be disqualified from receiving their inheritance. Now, that clause is being tested as
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If you or a loved one are in need of assistance with daily living and are considering applying for Medicaid home care in New York, the latest update to the 30-month lookback rule is something you can’t afford to ignore. While the lookback period was originally set to take effect in 2021 and has faced multiple delays, it is now expected to be implemented in March 2025 or possibly could delay again. This means that for the time being, applicants can still qualify for Medicaid home care without the added hurdle of providing financial records for the past 30 months. But once this rule is in place, it will drastically impact eligibility, making now the time to act. What’s Happening with the Medicaid Lookback Rule? New York has long had a five-year lookback period for Medicaid nursing home care, requiring applicants to disclose financial transactions from the past 60 months
Continue Reading... →When Tom passed away, his family quickly learned that his will wasn’t enough. What followed was a year of probate—an emotionally and financially draining process that left his children bitter and fractured. Despite Tom’s best intentions, court fees piled up, disputes over sentimental items escalated, and cherished family memories were overshadowed by resentment. Probate is a court-supervised process designed to settle an estate, but for many families, it feels more like a punishment. It’s public, lengthy, and expensive, with fees in New York State often eating up anywhere from 5%-20% of the estate’s value. For Tom’s family, it was a stark reminder that a will alone isn’t enough to prevent complications. Contrast this with Sarah’s story. Sarah had taken a proactive approach by working with The Estate Planning Law Center to create a revocable living trust. When Sarah passed, her assets bypassed probate entirely. Her successor trustee handled everything seamlessly—distributing
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When we think about heirs fighting over assets, it is the big ticket items that typically come to mind, such as the family home, investments, bank accounts and the like. However, it is often items of sentimental value—a mother’s necklace, for example, or a father’s watch—that cause the most contention. This is particularly true in the case of blended families. Worse, battles over sentimental assets often lead to hard feelings that can last for years or even permanently sever relationships between family members. How can you prevent your heirs from fighting over items with sentimental value? Many people believe that a statement in a will or trust that basically says ‘tangible personal property should be divided as my heirs see fit’ will solve the problem. However, this can lead to a host of potential conflicts. A better approach is to put specific items that you believe are of interest to
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