The primary purpose of a living will is to allow individuals to distribute their property as they choose upon death.
All real and personal property owned by a decedent at the time of death must always pass through probate.
Which of the following activities are permissible for paralegals to do?
Give Legal Advice
Draft estate planning documents under the supervision of an attorney
Interview clients in order to gather information
Answers b and c
A decedent who dies without a will is said to die intestate.
A written expression of a person's wishes to be allowed to die a natural death and not be kept alive by heroic or artificial methods.
Holographic Will
Living Will
Will
Estate Plan
A plan made to provide for the maker's physical and financial needs during lifetime, as well as the distribution of their estate upon death.
A will that is written completely in the handwriting of the testator and signed and dated by the maker. Witnesses may or may not be required, depending on state law.
A written document that leaves the estate of the individual who signed the will to the named persons or entities.
Having the mental ability to make a will is known as being "of sound mind."
Which of the following is not an example of real property?
Land
Building
Garage
Pen
What type(s) or property is/are immovable?
Real and personal property
Real property only
Personal property only
None of the above
The purpose of an estate plan is solely to provide directions for the distribution of an individual's estate upon death.
Which of the following is a written document that leaves the estate of the individual who signed the document to the named persons or entities?
Power of attorney
All of the above
If Sam and Sue are co-owners of a joint bank account and Sue passes away, Sam becomes the legal owner of the account.
A mountain is real property.
A quitclaim deed is executed while the grantor is alive but takes effect only upon the death of the grantor.
A deed in which the personal representative of an estate is the grantor and is transferring real property to the decedent's heirs or devisees.
Beneficiary Deed
Warranty Deed
Quitclaim Deed
Personal Representative's Deed
Grant Deed
A deed executed while the grantor is alive that takes effect only upon the death of the grantor.
Grand Deed
A deed that transfers title to real property from a grantor to a grantee, usually used in connection with a gift of property or a transfer between family members.
A deed to real property that transfers to the grantee only whatever interest the grantor has in the property.
A deed to real property, which guarantees that the seller has clear title to the property, and that title can be transferred or conveyed to the buyer.
Which of the following is not real property?
House
Shed
Corn field
Stove
A grant deed typically transfers title to real property from a grantor to a grantee in connection with a gift of property or a transfer between family members or to a family trust.
Pay-on-Death (POD) and Transfer-on-Death (TOD) accounts are probate assets.
Which of the following is not personal property?
Vase
Dresser
Dog
Betsy is purchasing real property from an acquaintance, Sarah. What type of deed should Betsy expect from Sarah in order to guarantee that she has clear title to the property?
John is allowed to live at 123 Home Street for his lifetime and, upon John's death, the property will pass to John's son. What interest does John have in the property?
Fee simple
Life estate
Tenancy in common
Community property
Which of the following should be included on an estate planning checklist or intake sheet?
Client's name, date of birth, and adress
Marital status
Children's names and adresses
A plan made to provide for the maker's physical and financial needs during lifetime, as well as the distribution of the maker's estate upon death.
Estate plan
Persistent Vegetative State (PVS)
Health Care Proxy
Power of Attorney
A written statement authorizing an agent or surrogate to make medical treatment decisions for another in the event of the other's inability to do so.
A legal document that authorizes another person to act as the grantor's attorney-in-fact and agent; execution before a notary public is nearly always required.
A condition of patients with severe brain damage in whom a coma has progressed to a state of wakefulness without detectable awareness.
It is perfectly acceptable for a caregiver to accompany an elderly client into an estate planning consultation.
A living trust does not become effective until the trustor/settlor passes away.
Which of the following can paralegals ethically do?
Prepare documents under the supervision of an attorney
Give legal advice
Advise clients about which document they need
Both a and c
When drafting a living trust for a client, a pour-over will is merely optional.
When does a springing power of attorney become effective?
Immediately upon execution
Only upon determination by a doctor that the principal is incapacitated
Upon the date set forth in the document
It is okay for attorneys and paralegals to draft wills that include testamentary bequests to themselves if a client asks for it to be done.
It is advisable that clients select an alternate agent so that if their first appointed agent is unable to serve, there is someone else appointed to do the job.
Which of the following is a written expression of a person's wishes to be allowed to die a natural death and not be kept alive by heroic or artificial measures?
Last will and testament
Living will
Health Care Power of Attorney
Which of the following may be a source of power for an attorney-in-fact appointed under a durable power of attorney?
State Statute
Enumerated powers in the power of attorney document
Both a and b
Who of the following have a fiduciary duty to uphold?
An agent
An attorney-in-fact
A principal
A durable power of attorney takes effect immediately upon execution.
Which of the following are the primary purposes for executing a living will?
To preserve the principal's assets for family members
To avoid unnecessary suffering on the part of loved ones
To ensure that the principal will receive tube feeding if incapacitated with no hope of recovery
Persistent Vegetative State
A person who authorizes another, as an agent, to represent him or her.
The famous Terry Schiavo case illustrates the importance of executing which estate planning document?
Last Will and Testament
A health care proxy does not take effect until or unless the principal becomes unable to make his or her own medical decisions.
Powers of attorney generally need only be signed and dated by the principal in order to be effective.
Third parties do not have to honor validly executed powers of attorney if they don't want to.
A springing power of attorney becomes effective upon the occurrence of a specific event at a future time.
A gift in a will that takes place only if a particular event has occurred by the time the maker of the will dies.
Conditional Bequest
Legacy
Specific Bequest
Executory Bequest
Nuncupative Will
Pour-over Will
Simple Will
A will that has been delivered orally to witnesses, as opposed to being written down and executed with the usual formalities.
A will drafted for a person who has already executed a living trust that leaves all remaining property to the trust.
A will that does not contain tax planning language.
A residuary clause a clause included in a will in order to prevent the disinherited individual from contesting the probate of the will, resulting in delays and additional administrative expenses for the estate.
The primary purpose of executing a will is to control the disposition of one's assets after death.
The requirements for due execution of a will vary by state, but most states require that, at a minimum, the will is written, signed and dated by the maker, and attested and signed by two witnesses.
After all other bequests have been made under a will, which clause is used to distribute whatever assets remain?
No content provision
Residuary Clause
Option to purchase property
Testamentary trust
In the revocation clause, the testator states that he or she revokes all prior wills and codicils.
What type of will is written completely in the handwriting of the testator and signed and dated by the maker?
Which of the following wills accompanies a revocable living trust?
Majority age is twenty-one (21) in most states, but is age eighteen (18) in a minority of states.
