Parenting Rights for Unmarried Parents.

By Arlene Rheinfelder, Prescott Tax & Paralegal
Certified Legal Document Preparer and Enrolled Agent

June, a month often chosen for weddings, is just around the corner. For those who choose to skip the formal ceremony, did you know that Arizona does not recognize “common law” marriage? In some states, if a couple has been living together and presenting themselves as a married couple, they are treated as if they were married. In Arizona this is not true.

To be legally married in Arizona, a couple must 1) purchase a marriage license, 2) an authorized person must perform the wedding ceremony, and 3) the signed marriage license must be returned to the court clerk for recording.  If a couple does not complete each step, then they are not legally married under Arizona law. One exception to these requirements are Native American couples who marry according to tribal custom.  Still, establishing the validity of such marriages may require court intervention.

When an unmarried couple with children separates, fathers are often surprised to learn that if there is a dispute over parenting time, or decision making, the father must first establish paternity through the court.  Even though the father may be on the birth certificate, paternity and parenting rights usually must be established by the court.

Now, suppose the unmarried couple separates. To establish which parent will make decisions about the children, and how the children will spend time with each parent, the parents will need to establish paternity though the court and file a parenting plan. If the parents agree, then matters proceed simply. If the parents disagree, the court will usually send the parents to mediation to determine how decisions will be made and establish a plan to share the children.  The court mediators work with the parents to create a plan that will be best for the children.  This agreed upon plan is signed by the parents, and sent to the judge for approval.

Have a question?  Prescott Tax & Paralegal is ready to help.  Call us at 928-778-3313 or visit at http://www.PrescottTax.com.

Prescott Tax & Paralegal, the office of Arlene Rheinfelder, EA AZCLDP is at 141 South McCormick, Suite 206, Prescott, AZ  (928) 778-3113.

This article is for informational purposes and not intended as legal advice.  If you need legal advice, you should contact an attorney.

More Information:
Parenting Rights in Prescott
Prescott Parenting Rights
Helpful Articles

What is a Living Trust?

By Arlene Rheinfelder, Prescott Tax & Paralegal
Certified Legal Document Preparer and Enrolled Agent

Think of a Living Trust as a refrigerator.  The “Trustor” is the person who creates the Trust and originally stocks the “refrigerator” by transferring ownership of property to the Trust. The Trust owns the property.

The “Trustee” manages the Trust.  Think of this as “refrigerator privileges” because depending on the terms of the Trust, the Trustee can put items into the fridge, take them out of the fridge, or give them to people named in the Trust.  Often, the Trustor and the Trustee are the same person.

A Trust has one or more “beneficiaries.”  In the refrigerator scenario, the beneficiary may have the right to receive some or all of the stuff (“assets”) in the fridge.  The Trust document states when the beneficiary can receive the assets.  It may be when the Trustor dies, when the beneficiary turns a certain age, or when the beneficiary has specific needs.

Why would a person want a Trust?  The most common reason is to avoid probate and estate taxes.  Assets held by a Trust do not need to pass through probate.  For 2017, you will pay no Federal estate tax on the first $5.49 million of your estate.  Currently, Arizona does not have an estate tax.

Since most of us don’t have $5.49 million in assets, why would we form a Trust? A few other reasons people create a Trust are to provide for a family member who has special needs, to allow a family member, who has debt problems, to become the beneficiary (but not allow creditors to take the assets), and to hold assets for minors. 

A Trust can be quite complex, but that does not mean that it needs to be lengthy.  A top New York estate planning attorney wrote a complex Trust that dealt with assets of greater than $5 million dollars, but the document was only 24 pages long. Longer is not necessarily better, and an excessively lengthy or poorly written document can make Trust administration an expensive nightmare.

Does a Trust take the place of a Will? No.  It can perform many of the same functions, but a Trust is usually combined with a “pour-over” Will.  Going back to the refrigerator example, if you bought groceries on the way home and died before you put them in the fridge, the pour over Will takes the groceries (property) and puts them in the fridge (Trust).  This makes sure that anything that may have been forgotten, or purchased after the Trust was formed, is transferred to the Trust and distributed according to the directions in the Trust.

Have a question? Prescott Tax & Paralegal is ready to help.  Call us at 928-778-3313 or visit us online at http://www.PrescottTax.com.

Prescott Tax & Paralegal, the office of Arlene Rheinfelder, AZCLDP is at 141 South McCormick, Suite 206, Prescott, AZ.

More Information:
Living Trusts in Prescott
Prescott Living Trusts
Helpful Articles

This article is for informational purposes and not intended as legal advice.  If you need legal advice, you should contact an attorney.

Reasons to use a Supreme Court certified Legal Document Preparer brought to you by Prescott Tax and Paralegal in Prescott

Often the need for legal services comes during times of economic issues.  Using a paralegal can help reduce the financial burden and decrease legal costs.  However, you must understand their capabilities and limits. Prescott Tax and Paralegal in Prescott discusses a few points to consider.

More often than ever before, people are using paralegals to assist in their legal matters. Paralegals have a broad range of skills that make them very useful in many legal settings.  A paralegal’s usefulness goes beyond preparing documents and conducting legal research. Useful skills include estate and trust administration, planning for special needs children, review of 3rd party office leases, legal matters related to real estate, , and much more.

Although knowledgeable and capable of contributing to the practice of law, the law prohibits document preparers from serving certain functions. Here are some examples:

• Conducting depositions
• Being an advocate in courts
• Giving legal advice

Statistics show in some states about 75% of divorces and 60% of bankruptcies are done without lawyers. Many of these do-it-yourselfers have chosen paralegals instead of hiring lawyers.

What else can a paralegal do for you? A paralegal is more than a clerical person. They have knowledge about local procedures, and are familiar with local forms and rules.

Do you need help with filing legal documents in Prescott? We would like to help you with all your legal document preparation needs. Contact Prescott Tax and Paralegal today! Call 928-778-3113 or visit our website at http://www.PrescottTax.com.

More Information:
Paralegal in Prescott
Prescott Legal Document Services
Helpful Paralegal Articles

Please Note: We are NOT attorneys and do NOT provide legal advice. Your information is confidential, but we do not have attorney-client privilege. If you need legal advice, you will be referred to an attorney.