Articles & insights
Plain-language articles from Pearson Bollman Law attorneys on estate planning, elder law, Medicaid, probate, and trust administration.
Digital accounts need estate planning, too. Learn how Iowa law handles fiduciary access to online records and what families can do to plan ahead.
Three different taxes get mixed up in conversations about passing money to family. Here is what Kansas and Missouri actually charge, where federal rules take over, and what changes when property sits on both sides of the state line.
Many Cedar Rapids families sign their trust and then stop short of moving the house into it, worried the bank will demand payment. Here is what actually happens, and the steps that keep the transfer clean.
A revocable trust solves real problems for some Bettendorf families and adds cost and paperwork for others. Here are five trade-offs, with the Iowa rules that decide which side of the line you fall on.
Naming someone who inherits from the trust to also manage it is common in Iowa, and it works for many families. Six questions can tell you whether your choice creates a conflict worth planning around.
The federal exemption climbed again this year and Iowa no longer collects a death tax of its own. Here’s what those changes mean for Iowa business owners and families, and which planning moves still earn their keep.
When only a photocopy of a loved one’s will turns up, Iowa courts follow a specific process. Here’s what families can expect, where the original is often hiding, and how to keep the problem from starting.
A generation-skipping trust holds assets for grandchildren rather than passing them through your children first. Here’s why Iowa grandparents use one, how it compares to simpler options, and what setting one up involves.
Many Kansas estates settle within six months to a year, though the answer for any given family depends on creditor deadlines, what the estate owns, and whether everyone agrees. Here is how each piece can shape the timeline.
Iowa allows up to five years to open probate, which is exactly why families let it slide. Here is what quietly goes wrong in the meantime, and when a full administration may not be needed at all.
Probate in Kansas follows its own timeline, filing rules, and inheritance order. This guide walks Overland Park families through what happens after a death, which estates qualify for a simpler path, and where people commonly get stuck.
A plain-English walkthrough of how an estate moves through Johnson County District Court after a death in Overland Park, from the first filing to final distribution, including the deadlines that catch many families off guard.
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Plain-language estate planning, long-term care, and probate articles from our attorneys. We never share your information.
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