New North English Lawyer Discusses Estate Planning

NORTH ENGLISH – On Aug. 25, lawyer Grant Taylor gave a presentation at the English Valleys History Center about inheritance rules and estate planning. Taylor received a degree in economics from San Diego State in 2012 and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Iowa in 2017. He was also elected to the Order of the Coif, a prestigious award given for legal scholarship. Taylor currently works at the law office of Elwood, Elwood & Buchanan, which is open in North English on Tuesdays and Thursdays or by appointment.

Taylor explained that, in the state of Iowa, if you do not have a will, inheritance defaults to giving all of your assets to your spouse, or, if you have children from another relationship, giving half to your spouse and half to those children. He stated that altering this arrangement is a good reason to have a will. He also stated that having a will is useful if you have minor children, because a will can nominate a guardian and place assets in a trust until your children turn 18.

Taylor explained that you can specify pretty much anything in a will; for example, you could disinherit your children and leave everything to charity. He noted the exception is an inability to disinherit your spouse, who can always claim at least 1/3rd of your estate, assuming there isn’t a pre-marital arrangement. He recommended getting self-notarizing wills, to avoid the need to have the court track down witnesses after your death.

A man in attendance asked if children unknown to a father would have a right to his estate. Taylor said they could get half of the estate, unless specifically disinherited, and that unknown children can cause lawsuits. He noted that children adopted by a different father are considered severed and lose parental inheritance rights. Taylor noted that wills do not go into effect immediately and need to be submitted to the court first after death, which can keep access to assets cut off for weeks.

A woman asked what happens if you don’t have a will, are unmarried, and have no kids. Taylor said that in that case your estate will be split among your parents’ descendents, or if there are none, your grandparents descendents, then great-grandparents and so on. The attendee asked how many places you can list as recipients in your will. Taylor stated you can give to as many places as you want. He recommended having wills divided by percentage, rather than dollar amount, to ensure everything adds up properly. He noted that people have to be notified that they have been disinherited.

Taylor explained how trusts work. He explained that, traditionally, trusts featured separate grantor, trustee and beneficiary, but that they can become complicated when the same person occupies all three roles. He explained that trusts can skip probate and save on court costs, but also can result in a trustee ignoring your wishes. He noted trusts can be good for minor children, people on disability benefits, and to keep land in the hands of a family.