ASHEVILLE, NC – January 13, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) welcomes Kaitlin Romanelli Myers as an Associate to its growing office in Asheville, North Carolina. Kaitlin focuses her practice on family law, insurance defense and general liability matters. She represents clients in a wide range of family law disputes and civil litigation including adoption, divorce, child custody, child support, alimony and termination of parental rights matters. She

Written by: Bradley R. Coppedge, Esq. Apologies for the longer than usual article

Written by: Brad R. Coppedge, Esq.  Everyone needs a Will.  This is really not an overstatement, whether you own very few assets or have assets worth tens of millions of dollars.  A Will makes things easier upon your loved ones after your death and makes the process of administering or probating your estate much easier.  Additionally, NO Will means NO control over the disposition of your own assets at

COLUMBUS, GA – September 2, 2020 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) has added Attorney Amber N. Crawford to its Columbus office. Amber focuses her practice on estate planning, probate, guardianships and conservatorships, business transactions, commercial real estate and fiduciary matters. Prior to joining HBS, Amber spent several years at a firm in Newnan, Georgia, where she specialized in probate and estate planning, represented creditors in Chapter 13 bankruptcy

Written by Bradley R. Coppedge, Esq. I. In General. Probate is generally a relatively simple process in Georgia and Alabama, if you have a valid Will.  It is much less of a hassle to administer an estate under a Will, and your fiduciary (termed an “Executor” under a Will) has broad powers.  Without a Will, the person who petitions the court to administer your estate (the “Administrator”) will often have

Written by: Bradley R. Coppedge, Esq. With the current coronavirus pandemic, what planning steps should you be taking? From an estate planning attorney’s perspective, it is actually business as usual, but perhaps with an added element of priority. Everyone’s goal right now should be first and foremost the health and safety of ourselves, our family and others, but this pandemic also reminds us of the importance, and in some

Written by: Bradley R. Coppedge, Esq. As parents, we always have our children’s best interests at the forefront of our minds.  And we usually try to do anything we can for our children.  However, many might take for granted the authority we have had as a parent for the last 18 years. How often have you called the bank on the student account or credit card they have that

Written by: Bradley R. Coppedge,Esq. In the stress and aftermath of a divorce, whether amicable or contested, an often overlooked topic is the importance of promptly updating one’s estate plan.  Failure to do so can lead to some unintended or even unbearable consequences. Let’s take a look at some of the key issues… 1) Last Will and Testament.  As I’ve said many other times, everyone needs a Will. (See my January

By: Bradley R. Coppedge, Esq. The Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (“UTMA” or the “Act”) of each state provides for the management, use and disposition of property gifted or otherwise transferred to a minor. The provisions of the Act apply to a transfer that makes reference to the Act as adopted by each state (e.g., the “Georgia Transfers to Minors Act”) in the designation of the transfer. These accounts

There have been a lot of changes in the estate tax laws in the last several years.  We now have an exemption amount of $11,180,000, and it is portable between spouses in most instances.  This combination of amount, and portability, has virtually eliminated true “estate tax planning” for the vast majority of individuals. However, there remain individuals with high net worth, for whom “estate tax planning” remains very relevant.