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Estate Planning - Lifetime Planning
Law Firm Business | 2010/09/03 14:17
Marathon Legal LLC

Estate planning is a gift to yourself and to the people you love.  Even those of modest wealth should plan their estates, because modern estate planning means more than distributing property and avoiding taxes.  At its core, fine estate planning reaches beyond tax and distribution concerns by including written expressions of your values as they pertain to the relationships you have with other people and the wishes you have for your own care should self-care become impossible.  Fine estate planning minimizes family acrimony and mitigates the burden which poor planning transfers to the people you love when you pass away or become incapacitated.

As these comments suggest, estate planning can address a wide variety of concerns.  Although two estate plans are rarely identical, Wisconsin law has developed reliable ways to address most common concerns.  What follows are brief descriptions of the most common estate planning concerns and the corresponding legal mechanisms which are best designed to address them.

Avoiding Probate
The length and cost of probate should be of special concern to Wisconsin residents with estates whose monetary value exceeds $50,000.  Avoiding these pitfalls of probate normally involves ensuring that one’s assets are properly titled and beneficiaries properly designated.  Sometimes trusts are the most practical way to save your family the expense and burden of probate.

Providing for Minor Children

Planning your estate affords you the opportunity to speak on behalf of your minor children should you pass away or become disabled.  Rather than having a court decide who will care for them, your estate plan allows you to name appropriate guardians of your choice.  Your plan can also address how you wish to provide for your children’s support.

Incapacity Planning

As life expectancies lengthen, planning for incapacity or disability becomes increasingly important.  Powers of attorney, advance directives, and other documented instructions enable the people you trust to manage your finances and healthcare when you cannot do these things for yourself.  These aspects of your plan minimize the time and hassle others may encounter when trying to act on your behalf.

Minimizing Estate Taxes

Large estates should be concerned about laws which tax the transfer of wealth from older to younger generations.  Fortunately, these laws also reward those who plan ahead.  With proper planning, it is not uncommon for large estates to save tens-of-thousands of dollars in estate taxes – far more than the cost of most well-drafted plans.


Marathon Legal LLC
Firm Websites | 2010/09/01 14:17
Marathon Legal LLC enhances the legal profession by delivering exceptionally honest, transparent, and thorough legal representation at a fair price to the residents and businesses of Wisconsin. The firm improves the quality of human relations by modeling relationships built on trust and by rendering sound legal advice which promotes enduring justice, fairness, and goodwill. Marathon Legal LLC connects busy people to the operation of law as seamlessly as modern markets and technology practically allow.

Marathon Legal LLC provides business law, estate planning, and family law services to all of Central Wisconsin, including Marathon County, Marshfield, Portage County, Schofield, Stevens Point, Wausau, Weston, Wisconsin Rapids and Wood County.


DOJ's elite Public Integrity unit gets new leader
Legal News | 2010/08/30 16:02

The Justice Department's Public Integrity Section has a storied 34-year history of pursuing corruption in government and safeguarding the public trust.

That trust was breached, however, when some of the unit's prosecutors failed to turn over evidence favorable to the defense in their high-profile criminal trial of Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, who died earlier this month in a plane crash.

Now Jack Smith, a 41-year-old prosecutor with a love for courtroom work and an impressive record, has been brought in to restore the elite unit's credibility.

Before Stevens, Public Integrity's renown was built on large successes — like the prosecution of the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal and convictions of federal and state judges, members of Congress and state legislators, military officers, federal lawmen and bureaucrats and their state counterparts over the years.

But its stumble — not disclosing exculpatory evidence as Supreme Court precedent requires — was equally large. It was so serious that Attorney General Eric Holder, one of Public Integrity's distinguished alums, stepped in and asked a federal judge to throw out Stevens' convictions.



Thousands sign on for $10 billion BP suit
Legal Watch | 2010/08/30 14:01

The revelation that BP's Texas City refinery emitted toxic benzene for more than a month has ignited a furor in the port community that has suffered its share of deadly industrial accidents and toxic spills.

Thousands of residents who fear they may have been exposed to the known carcinogen released at the oil refinery from April 6 to May 16 have been flooding parking lots and conference halls where local trial attorneys hosted information sessions and sought clients for class-action lawsuits against the oil giant.

BP faces the new challenge just as it is reaching a key milestone in another crisis — plugging the Gulf of Mexico well that blew out in an oil spill disaster that is costing the company billions of dollars.

On Wednesday, more than 3,400 people lined the hallways and sidewalks around the Nessler Center to sign on to a $10 billion class-action lawsuit filed Tuesday in Galveston federal court by Friendswood attorney Anthony Buzbee.

The lawsuit alleges the release of 500,000 pounds of chemicals - including 17,000 pounds of benzene - has jeopardized the health and property values of people who live and work in the area. At the nearby College of the Mainland, a separate town hall meeting drew a crowd of 600.



Utah court rejects appeal from polygamous sect
Court Center | 2010/08/30 10:01

Utah's Supreme Court has rejected a petition from members of a southern Utah-based polygamous sect seeking a reversal of changes made to its communal land trust.

In a ruling issued Friday, justices say members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints waited too long to challenge the state's intervention in the United Effort Plan Trust.

Valued at $110 million, the trust holds the property in Hildale, Utah and Colorado City, Ariz., the twin border towns where most church members live.

Utah seized the trust in 2005 after allegations of mismanagement by church leaders. A court-appointed accountant has since converted the trust into a secular entity.

FLDS members consider state control of the UEP a violation of their religious rights.



Shapiro & Fishman accuses McCollum of grandstanding
Headline News | 2010/08/23 15:57

Law firm Shapiro & Fishman has accused Attorney General Bill McCollum of pre-election grandstanding and “abuse of power” in connection with McCollum’s recent announcement that his office is conducting a foreclosure fraud investigation into that firm and two others.

The allegations are in response to a coordinated investigation announced by McCollum during an Aug. 10 press conference. McCollum said his office is looking at whether the three South Florida firms engaged in unfair and deceptive actions in their handling of foreclosure cases.

The other firms were the Law Offices of Marshall C. Watson in Fort Lauderdale and the Law Offices of David J. Stern, P.A. in Plantation.

The firm’s response came Friday in a motion to quash a subpoena in Palm Beach County Circuit Court.



Armstrong Teasdale Adds Three New Associates
Press Releases | 2010/08/23 15:57

Armstrong Teasdale LLP announces the arrival of associates Irina Sandler, Lauren Ashley Smith, and Adam R. Wuller.

“The subtle shift in the economy has brought about additional business and afforded us the opportunity to add talent,” said Michael A. Chivell, Armstrong Teasdale’s managing partner. “As we position Armstrong Teasdale as a premier firm in this region, we’ll continue to place a premium on attracting exceptional attorneys in key practice areas.”

Former legal counsel at the affiliate of Emerson Electric in Moscow, Irina Sandler joins the firm’s International practice group and will focus on international trade, import and export controls, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and antitrust compliance. She earned her LL.M. in Intellectual Property and Technology Law from Washington University School of Law, was an Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Program Fellow at the University of Illinois College of Law, and received her Degree in Law from Russian Law Academy of the Russian Ministry of Justice.

Lauren Ashley Smith, a recent law school graduate, is a member of the firm’s Public Finance and Real Estate, and Financial Services practice groups. Drawing on her research and scholarship in land use, and state and local government law, she will focus on public/private real estate development and municipal finance. Additionally, Smith will assist lenders and other creditors seeking to maximize their recovery against debtors in litigation, liquidation, reorganization, and bankruptcy including all aspects of post-judgment collection efforts. She earned her J.D. from Washington University School of Law and her B.A. from Marquette University.

Adam R. Wuller, also a recent graduate, is a registered patent attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and joins the firm’s Intellectual Property practice group. The majority of his work will involve the preparation and prosecution of U.S. and foreign patent applications in a wide range of technical disciplines, including mechanical and medical devices. Wuller received his J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law and his B.S. in engineering physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.



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