Practice Tips

Get date of death values for stocks the easy way

March 10, 2009

Obtaining date of death values of publicly traded stocks for probate and tax purposes can be laborious. The proper valuation method is to average the high and the low selling price on the date of death. If the decedent died on a weekend or a day the markets weren’t open, you obtain the high-low average [...]

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Top 5 must-have resources for Minnesota probate attorneys

March 5, 2009

You need a good set of reference materials if you are going to practice probate law in Minnesota. Here’s my top 5 must-have resources that you should have at your office: 1. Minnesota Estate Administration Deskbook: This is the manual for all phases of the probate process. I refer to it at least weekly. If [...]

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2009 Update to Minnesota Estate Administration Deskbook

March 5, 2009

The 2009 update to the Minnesota Estate Administration Deskbook, published by Minnesota CLE, recently arrived in my mailbox along with revised forms on a CD. This is one of the “must-have” resources for any attorney practicing probate law in Minnesota. Tip: Review the updated materials before filing them away in the deskbook for important developments [...]

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Found dead

February 26, 2009

Initial probate documents require the petitioner to state the decedent’s date of death. But what happens if a person dies and it isn’t discovered for some time afterwards and it cannot be determined when the person died? In this situation, the death certificate will typically list the date of death as the date the decedent [...]

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Check probate court filings the easy way

February 20, 2009

An easy way to monitor court filings on a probate case is to access Minnesota’s trial court records online. Although you can’t see the actual documents, you can see entries of documents that have been filed. I frequently check the online probate records for items such as: Statements for Claims that were filed with the [...]

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Follow Minnesota probate updates on Twitter

February 12, 2009

Now there is another way to receive updates from this blog and stay up-to-date on the latest Minnesota probate and estate law issues. If you are a Twitter user, you can now follow me at www.twitter.com/boydjohnson. Posts from this blog automatically show up my twitter page. Additionally, I post other items to the twitter page [...]

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Picture guide to correct assembly of Minnesota estate tax returns

February 6, 2009

As I discussed earlier, the Minnesota Department of Revenue has new assembly instructions for attachments to the Minnesota estate tax return (M706). I’ve just learned that they have released a picture guide on how to properly assemble the M706. More details are also available at: Assembling an Estate Tax Return (links to Minnesota Dept. of [...]

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Which states have an estate tax?

January 13, 2009

On the subject of yesterday’s post regarding Obama’s estate tax plan, it is helpful to have on-hand a list of estate tax thresholds for other states. The Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog has posted exemption levels for the 22 states that have an estate tax of some kind.

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70-day waiting period applies to all property

January 9, 2009

Always serve the Notice to the Commissioner of Human Services as soon as practicable during the commencement of the estate. One of the reasons to do so is that “no property” subject to the administration of the estate may be distributed until 70 days after the notice is served on the commissioner if the decedent [...]

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