Powers of attorney are strong tools for estate planning as they enable you to name a reliable individual to look after your affairs should you ever become unable to do so yourself. For most families in Michigan, a comprehensive estate plan consists not only of a will and a trust but also of carefully drawn financial and medical powers of attorney that work in conjunction with those documents. It is important to use forms specifically tailored to Michigan, since the documents in question grant...

Trusts can be an excellent estate planning tool because they offer several important benefits, including privacy, continuity of management, and, in many cases, avoiding probate. However, a trust can only accomplish those goals if it is properly funded. What does it mean to fund a trust? Funding a trust means transferring ownership of your assets into the trust. In other words, after the trust is created, your property must actually be retitled, assigned, or otherwise transferred into the...

Clean, organized accounting is an essential part of preparing a successful business sale. While some business owners wait until they are actually considering a sale to clean up and organize their accounting practices, that approach can be time-consuming, messy, and may uncover issues that should have been addressed earlier. Whether you are planning to sell your business in a month or in a few years, having your accounting dialed in now can save you time, stress, and unnecessary complications...