Unmarried Partners - Unequal Legal Rights
Unmarried Partners - Unequal Legal Rights
By Roger McCaffrey-Boss
Copyright by Gay Chicago Magazine and Roger McCaffrey-Boss
May 15, 2007.
There are many examples where LGBT couples are not afforded the same legal rights as are married couples:
The estate of one partner who dies may be subject to sizable federal estate taxes, while married spouses can leave everything to their spouse free of federal estate tax.
One partner who is not a natural or adoptive parent has no legal rights to the other partner’s children, even if they have lived together for many years.
A LGBT partner has no rights to their partner’s pension or social security benefits.
A surviving partner has no right to inherit any of their lover’s property unless they are specifically provided for in either a will, joint tenancy ownership, named beneficiary of an IRA or life insurance policy or beneficiary under a living trust declaration.
LGBT couples who plan a long-term relationship should consider all the estate planning and retirement needs for their relationship. As only about one-quarter of all adults die with a valid will, such an oversight could be disaster for the surviving partner. Along with naming a partner in a will, all couples need to review who holds title to what property and who is listed as the beneficiary of insurance policies, annuities and retirement plans.
Over the past several years, LGBT couples have increasingly used revocable living trusts as a way to efficiently pass on assets to their partners and to insure that their partners will handle their personal affairs if they ever become incapacitated.
Traditionally, revocable living trusts were used by wealthy couples to ease financial headaches for their spouses and avoid court costs, allowing people to put assets into a fund while they were alive. Although not exempt from claims of creditors, the assets in a revocable living trust do not go through probate. In some cases, a trust may be a money-saving technique, as legal and court fees for probate may run from two to five percent of the size of the estate.
A revocable living trust is a legal arrangement in which a person executes a written trust document naming themselves as the trustee of their own trust, and while alive, they transfer their property to their trust so that the trust holds legal title to all their assets.
The document creating the trust allows the person making the trust (maker) to at any time dissolve the trust, change the trust or take assets from the trust, always retaining complete control of their property.
The trust document can provide for the appointment of a successor trustee (surviving lover) who would only act upon the death or disability of the maker of the trust. Naming a person as a successor trustee allows the maker of the trust to supervise the trustee, train him or her in the management of the assets and learn if the successor trustee will be able to manage the trust’s assets after the maker’s death.
Roger McCaffrey-Boss is a graduate of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, and is a member of the Chicago Bar Association. You can e-mail him at RVMLAWYER@aol.com. He suggests that you consult your own lawyer for any specific questions regarding the issues raised in this column.
By Roger McCaffrey-Boss
Copyright by Gay Chicago Magazine and Roger McCaffrey-Boss
May 15, 2007.
There are many examples where LGBT couples are not afforded the same legal rights as are married couples:
The estate of one partner who dies may be subject to sizable federal estate taxes, while married spouses can leave everything to their spouse free of federal estate tax.
One partner who is not a natural or adoptive parent has no legal rights to the other partner’s children, even if they have lived together for many years.
A LGBT partner has no rights to their partner’s pension or social security benefits.
A surviving partner has no right to inherit any of their lover’s property unless they are specifically provided for in either a will, joint tenancy ownership, named beneficiary of an IRA or life insurance policy or beneficiary under a living trust declaration.
LGBT couples who plan a long-term relationship should consider all the estate planning and retirement needs for their relationship. As only about one-quarter of all adults die with a valid will, such an oversight could be disaster for the surviving partner. Along with naming a partner in a will, all couples need to review who holds title to what property and who is listed as the beneficiary of insurance policies, annuities and retirement plans.
Over the past several years, LGBT couples have increasingly used revocable living trusts as a way to efficiently pass on assets to their partners and to insure that their partners will handle their personal affairs if they ever become incapacitated.
Traditionally, revocable living trusts were used by wealthy couples to ease financial headaches for their spouses and avoid court costs, allowing people to put assets into a fund while they were alive. Although not exempt from claims of creditors, the assets in a revocable living trust do not go through probate. In some cases, a trust may be a money-saving technique, as legal and court fees for probate may run from two to five percent of the size of the estate.
A revocable living trust is a legal arrangement in which a person executes a written trust document naming themselves as the trustee of their own trust, and while alive, they transfer their property to their trust so that the trust holds legal title to all their assets.
The document creating the trust allows the person making the trust (maker) to at any time dissolve the trust, change the trust or take assets from the trust, always retaining complete control of their property.
The trust document can provide for the appointment of a successor trustee (surviving lover) who would only act upon the death or disability of the maker of the trust. Naming a person as a successor trustee allows the maker of the trust to supervise the trustee, train him or her in the management of the assets and learn if the successor trustee will be able to manage the trust’s assets after the maker’s death.
Roger McCaffrey-Boss is a graduate of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, and is a member of the Chicago Bar Association. You can e-mail him at RVMLAWYER@aol.com. He suggests that you consult your own lawyer for any specific questions regarding the issues raised in this column.
posted by Carlos T Mock @ 6:59 PM
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