» LeClair L. Flaherty

How does a trust avoid probate? It’s in the details. In my experience, the primary reason most people set up trusts is to avoid probate. So, how does that work? Does the mere fact of having signed a trust cut out the probate court? Not quite. I… Read More

We’ve been posting, along with many others, about the new federal Corporate Transparency Act. (Read our overview here.) The Act requires most small and medium-sized companies (“Reporting Companies”) to disclose to the U.S. Treasury Department i… Read More

If you have done your estate planning, you have almost certainly signed a general power attorney. In that document, you (the “principal”) gave another person (your “agent“) authority to act on your behalf in all matters not related to health… Read More

What makes you tremble when you think about estate planning? On this Halloween day, I thought I’d let you in on a few of the estate planning fears people have shared with me over the years: If I plan for death, I will die. This is a very real fear… Read More

I’m occasionally asked if an individual can create or update an estate plan if a doctor has opined that the individual can no longer make sound decisions or the individual has a court-appointed guardian or conservator. The short answer: It depends.… Read More

We saw the U.S. Supreme Court issue a unanimous decision this past June, a rare occasion indeed. In Groff vs. DeJoy, the Court addressed the question of how far an employer must go in accommodating an employee’s religious needs. Gerald Groff was a… Read More

Do you hear a soft exhale on the summer breeze? Home sellers statewide are breathing a collective sigh of relief. Just last week, the Michigan Supreme Court overturned a 2021 Court of Appeals decision that made home sellers liable for a building code… Read More

Long ago, I heard folk musician Ralston Bowles sing a hilarious song about people yakking on their cell phones while driving. The punchline of the chorus was “shut up and drive.” Mr. Bowles’ satirical tirade, as you would expect, did not affect… Read More