Paw Paw Wills & Probate Lawyer, Michigan

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Cortney Gibson
About | Practice Areas
Dulaney Gibson Law and Advocacy
2447 Emerson Ave Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302» view map
Estate Law
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If two heads are better than one, imagine the team WE would make. Simply put...we want your head in the game, too.

800-879-0801
1. Cortney Gibson Bloomfield Hills, MI
  Attorney at Law - MI, 2012
  Thomas M. Cooley Law School J.D.
2. AboutDulaney Gibson Law and Advocacy
  We Have Your Back
3. Practice AreasExpertise
  Estate Law
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Includes: Estate Administration, Living Wills, Wills

Michael J. Willis

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Bankruptcy & Debt, Wills & Probate, Contract, Elder Law, Estate Planning

Dedicated to Excellence in Client Service

Michael Willis founded this firm with his brother, Shaun Patrick Willis. Their father, Hon. Frank D. Willis, is the probate judge for Van Buren Count... (more)

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800-909-2450

491 W South St, Kalamazoo, MI 49007

Jonathan W. Willoughby

Estate Administration, Estate, Civil & Human Rights, Accident & Injury

Status: In Good Standing Licensed: 38 Years

CONTACT

8051 Moorsbridge Road, Portage, MI 49024

Jennifer Herrick Coles

Elder Law, Wills & Probate, Trusts

Status: In Good Standing

CONTACT

8175 Creekside, Portage, MI 49024

Louise B. Wright

Real Estate, Trusts, Wills & Probate, Estate

Status: Suspended Licensed: 34 Years

CONTACT

308 Woodside Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49006

800-923-0641

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LEGAL TERMS

ESTATE PLANNING

The art of continuing to prosper when you're alive, and passing your property to your loved ones with a minimum of fuss and expense after you die. Planning your... (more...)

The art of continuing to prosper when you're alive, and passing your property to your loved ones with a minimum of fuss and expense after you die. Planning your estate may involve making a will, living trust, healthcare directives, durable power of attorney for finances or other documents.

INTESTATE

The condition of dying without a valid will. The probate court appoints an administrator to distribute the deceased person's property according to state law.

LAPSE

Under a will, the failure of a gift of property. A gift lapses when the beneficiary dies before the person who made the will, and no alternate has been named. S... (more...)

Under a will, the failure of a gift of property. A gift lapses when the beneficiary dies before the person who made the will, and no alternate has been named. Some states have anti-lapse statutes, which prevent gifts to relatives of the deceased person from lapsing unless the relative has no heirs of his or her own. A lapsed gift becomes part of the residuary estate.

DOWER AND CURTESY

A surviving spouse's right to receive a set portion of the deceased spouse's estate -- usually one-third to one-half. Dower (not to be confused with a 'dowry') ... (more...)

A surviving spouse's right to receive a set portion of the deceased spouse's estate -- usually one-third to one-half. Dower (not to be confused with a 'dowry') refers to the portion to which a surviving wife is entitled, while curtesy refers to what a man may claim. Until recently, these amounts differed in a number of states. However, because discrimination on the basis of sex is now illegal in most cases, most states have abolished dower and curtesy and generally provide the same benefits regardless of sex -- and this amount is often known simply as the statutory share. Under certain circumstances, a living spouse may not be able to sell or convey property that is subject to the other spouse's dower and curtesy or statutory share rights.

PROVING A WILL

Convincing a probate court that a document is truly the deceased person's will. Usually this is a simple formality that the executor or administrator easily sat... (more...)

Convincing a probate court that a document is truly the deceased person's will. Usually this is a simple formality that the executor or administrator easily satisfies by showing that the will was signed and dated by the deceased person in front of two or more witnesses. When the will is holographic -- that is, completely handwritten by the deceased and not witnessed, it is still valid in many states if the executor can produce relatives and friends to testify that the handwriting is that of the deceased.

GRANTOR

Someone who creates a trust. Also called a trustor or settlor.

TRUST CORPUS

Latin for 'the body' of the trust. This term refers to all the property transferred to a trust. For example, if a trust is established (funded) with $250,000, t... (more...)

Latin for 'the body' of the trust. This term refers to all the property transferred to a trust. For example, if a trust is established (funded) with $250,000, that money is the corpus. Sometimes the trust corpus is known as the 'res,' a Latin word meaning 'thing.'

HEIR APPARENT

One who expects to be receive property from the estate of a family member, as long as she outlives that person.

CERTIFIED COPY

A copy of a document issued by a court or government agency guaranteed to be a true and exact copy of the original. Many agencies and institutions require certi... (more...)

A copy of a document issued by a court or government agency guaranteed to be a true and exact copy of the original. Many agencies and institutions require certified copies of legal documents before permitting certain transactions. For example, a certified copy of a death certificate is required before a bank will release the funds in a deceased person's payable-on-death account to the person who has inherited them.

SAMPLE LEGAL CASES

In re Temple Marital Trust

... Wallace Temple, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Clinton Probate Court Ralph Temple and Dean Temple, Respondents-Appellees. Docket No. 273911. ... Petitioner petitioned the probate court to construe the trust as not allowing Clarence to amend it after Florence's death. . . . ...

In re Smith Trust

... The respondent refused to sell the property to the petitioners. The petitioners filed a petition in the Sanilac County Probate Court, seeking to compel the sale of the land pursuant to the lease agreement. ... As a result, the probate court held that no enforceable agreement existed. ...

In re Kostin Estate

... In Docket No. 272767, respondent Camille A. Kent appeals as of right the probate court's judgment and order following a bench trial, interpreting a will and trust, determining heirs and devisees, and determining title to property after decedent Juanita Kostin's death in 2004. ...

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Paw Paw Wills & Probate Lawyer, Michigan

Sponsored Law Firm

Dulaney Gibson Law and Advocacy

SPONSORED LAWYERS

Michael J. Willis

Jonathan W. Willoughby

Jennifer Herrick Coles

Louise B. Wright

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LEGAL TERMS

ESTATE PLANNING

INTESTATE

LAPSE

DOWER AND CURTESY

PROVING A WILL

GRANTOR

TRUST CORPUS

HEIR APPARENT

CERTIFIED COPY

SAMPLE LEGAL CASES

In re Temple Marital Trust

In re Smith Trust

In re Kostin Estate

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