Wills, Trusts & Estates: Practical Guidance

Lexis Practical Guidance section Trusts and Estates includes ten topics and tasks. One can search the following topics: Trends & Insights; Estate Planning Fundamentals; Wills; Trusts; Disability Planning; Powers of Attorney; Probate and Estate Administration; Tax Considerations; Marital Agreements; and International Considerations. There also are state law surveys, automated templates and resource kits.

An excellent source on why revocable trusts are an important estate tool for many different types of clients. Also explains when irrevocable trusts are important for tax planning and asset protection planning.

Lexis 50-State Survey of Estate, Gift & Trust Laws - Trusts Section.

Lexis 50-State Survey of Estate, Gift & Trust Laws - Wills Section. Links to state laws and regulations regarding wills and last testaments.

A 50-state survey of disqualifications from taking under a will through fraud, distress, divorce, annulment, or killing the testator.

This collection contains nine surveys on: wills, trusts, state estate tax laws, execution requirements, health care directives, and additional topics.
Tip: Check whether a survey is "maintained" by Lexis. If "maintained," scroll to bottom of survey to view "Current as of" date.

Thomson Reuters Practical Law section: Trusts & Estates includes ten topics: Wills; Revocable Trusts; Irrevocable Trusts; Trust Administration; Taxation of Trusts & Estates; Special Needs Planning; Charitable Planning; Powers of Attorney for Property; Health Care Planning; and General Trusts & Estates. There are practice notes, standard documents/clauses, checklists, toolkits, and State Q & A on probate and wills.

Trusts & Estates State Q&A contains sections on: Revocable Trusts; Irrevocable Trusts; Wills; Probate; and Estate Tax. Each state's Q&A document bears a different date. This is a useful, well-organized resource.

This helpful tool allows a researcher to: select a topic under Trusts and Estates (Estate Tax, Irrevocable Trusts, Revocable Trusts, Probate or Wills); select a question and jurisdictions; and compare the requirements of the different jurisdictions.

This chart (and links to state statutes) will tell you which states have estate taxes, and which do not.

By John J. Regan, Michael Gilfix, Rebecca C. Morgan & David M. English.

Available in Lexis. Updated two times per year.
This comprehensive guide to elder law covers: Medicaid and asset preservation, durable powers of attorney, income tax planning, estate planning and Medicare/Social Security. Includes forms and state specific tables.

By Sebastian Grassi, Jr.

Available in Lexis. This article is a detailed overview of issues an attorney may encounter or need to address while working on an estate plan for a family with a special needs child. The article assumes that the attorney is knowledgeable about general trusts and estates matters (wills, trusts, powers of attorney, advanced medical directives, etc.), but does not assume that the attorney is a specialist in special needs estate planning.

Publicly accessible. This Estate Planning video series includes an overview of drafting and implementing an estate plan. Running time for each video: approx. 1 hr.

Estate planning information & FAQs.

Available in Lexis. "This publication covers all aspects of estate practice in Florida, including will drafting, probate, will contests, trusts, estate administration, estate taxes, accountings, and more."

Available in Bloomberg Law. Tax Management Portfolio Durable Powers of Attorney, No. 859-3rd, contains basic information on durable powers of attorney and reviews in detail their creation and use.
Note: When asked, a Bloomberg Law representative stated that these portfolios are updated regularly by content teams "on a rolling basis." BLS librarians would prefer that the BNA portfolios include DATES when last updated. BLS students: if a portfolio does not bear a date, try to find an additional recent source (one that includes a publication date or "last updated" date) in which to confirm information.