The mystery surrounding the life and $500 million fortune of 104-year-old copper heiress Huguette Clark deepened this week with the filing of a petition by two of the heiress’s nieces and a nephew asking a Manhattan court to appoint a guardian to oversee her financial affairs.

Last month, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office announced that it was investigating the famously reclusive heiress’s longtime attorney Wallace Bock and accountant Irving Kamsler, who is a registered sex offender.

Today, Bock released a statement saying that he has carried out Clark’s wishes to the letter, and that the petitioners for guardianship are “nothing more than officious interlopers, all three of whom are virtual strangers to Ms. Clark, and with whom Ms. Clark has knowingly and assiduously avoided contact for decades.”

Huguette Clark has lived in virtual seclusion for most of her adult life.  Even Bock admits he has only seen her once or twice.  She reportedly moved from her posh 42-room Park Avenue co-op 20 years ago and is currently said to be living in a Manhattan hospital.

Clark’s father was U.S. Senator William A. Clark of Montana, who made his fortune in the Montana copper mines and was at one time the second richest man in America.  Among her properties is a 52-acre Connecticut estate now on the market for $24 million and a 23-acre mansion in Santa Barbara overlooking the Pacific Ocean that she has not visited in over 50 years.

You can learn more about the fascinating life of Huguette Clark on the MSNBC website that broke this story in August.

To demystify your estate planning needs, contact our Newport Beach asset protection law firm.

A recent article posted at Forbes.com gives some good guidance on how to choose the right senior community.  If you are nearing the age where you are thinking about moving to a senior living community, or are in charge of finding the right place for your aging parents, chances are that you are probably going to be looking for a continuing care retirement community (CCRC), which is a facility that “moves” seniors along from independent living to assisted living and, if necessary, to a nursing home with 24/7 care.

Most elder care financial advisors suggest that seniors and their caretakers approach CCRCs as an investment.  According to the Forbes.com article, CCRCs typically require a large upfront payment plus high continuing monthly rates.  Here are some questions the article suggests seniors ask when considering a CCRC:

1. Is the community established or even built yet? Be sure to check into the developer’s finances; some seniors get stuck paying big fees for facilities that either don’t get built or are stalled by financial problems way past the time the new home is needed.

2. Is the entrance fee refundable? If you die or decide to move out within a certain period of time after moving in, your entrance fee may be wholly or just partially refundable.

3. What’s included and what costs extra? Nearly all CRCCs provide guaranteed access to health and personal care services but not all of them include it in their monthly fee.

4. Are there just old folks? Facilities with ties to the local community and schools tend to offer seniors a more satisfactory lifestyle.

5. Is there a pool? Wellness programs keep seniors active, helping to lower rates of depression and illness.

6. What transportation is available? You may want easy access to public transportation for the day when you have to give up your drivers’ license or even if you just don’t want to pay for a taxi every time you want to go somewhere.  Some CRCCs provide transportation for residents.

7. Are there other special amenities? Free Internet, concert tickets or other amenities can add a lot to a senior’s quality of life.

8. What about Alzheimer’s patients? The reality is that the incidence of Alzheimer’s is growing with the population.  Facilities that offer Alzheimer’s wings may be a good choice for both couples and singles.

For more retirement planning information, consult with a California estate planning attorney.

When over $10 million in assets is left to canine companions, the only question about probate litigation is: how quickly will it be filed?

Miami Beach heiress Gail Posner died in March at the age of 67; since there is currently no estate tax, there is much more for her heirs to divide.  However, three of those heirs happen to be dogs, who inherited a $3 million trust fund and an $8.3 million mansion.  Posner’s will left her staff a total of $27 million, including $10 million to one bodyguard and $5 million to the housekeeper who takes care of the dogs.

Her only living child?  He got $1 million.  And he’s suing, claiming undue influence.

Bret Carr and his mother did not have a loving mother-son relationship.  In fact, Carr says it was often rocky, but that the two had recently reconciled.

In an interview on the Today Show, he said that his mother had been unduly influenced by her caretakers, was drugged and brainwashed into enriching her pooches and staff and showed a video he had taken with his cell phone that showed the staff trying to keep him away from his mother’s side while she was asking him to stay.

California and every other state in the U.S. has an undue influence law that allows families to file a lawsuit if they believe a loved one has been advantage of in such a fashion that their true wishes were not reflected in their final will and estate plan.

If something like this ever happens to you, an experienced estate planning attorney or probate litigation lawyer can help.

According to a recent article from SmartMoney.com, “One straightforward estate-planning tool is a simple gift, taking advantage of the annual $13,000 per person (or $26,000 per couple) gift exclusion. Some parents opt to give that gift in stock rather than cash, which lets the recipient enjoy the profit if stock prices rise. But after the 2009 surge in the market, other people may prefer to wait until death to pass along stocks that have risen sharply; with that arrangement, the recipient may be able to avoid paying taxes.”

California estate planning lawyers can help you understand and plan your gifting to avoid taxation on stocks or cash gifts. Gifting stocks may not be a bad idea in this market — while the value of stocks dropped to staggering lows across many corporations traded on the NYSE, many are on the rise in the first quarter of 2010. Given the pendulum-like nature of stocks, someone gifted stocks after your death may be able to cash them out and enjoy the liquid assets after you pass away. In the meantime, however, that is to say, before you die, gifting the stocks will allow them to continue to increase in value. This means more value for the recipient of the gift — and if you gift to a minor child, you may be able to take advantage of that increase — tax free — before your final will and testament is being read.

Newport Beach asset protection attorneys can tell you more about how gifting can work in your favor as well as that of your loved ones. If you have an interest in working gifting into your estate plan, contact your California asset management lawyer today.

If you are a senior 70 ½ or older who owns an IRA we have good news for you. Last year Congress approved legislation that waives the minimum withdrawal requirement for seniors in 2009.

This leaves seniors with more options than usual regarding their IRAs. You can still choose to take the withdrawal, of course; but deferring the withdrawal has the double benefit of allowing your investment to continue to grow within your IRA and lowering your taxable income for 2009.

If you were unaware of this legislation and you’ve already taken your withdrawal for 2009 you’re still in luck—the IRS is allowing seniors who have already taken the withdrawal to change their minds and roll their money back into a retirement account.

Of course, all of this good news doesn’t come without restrictions and exceptions, the first of which is that the deadline for the rollover is November 30^th, or 60 days after you receive your withdrawal, whichever is later. Sandra Block explains all of the rules and restrictions—and goes into further detail regarding the benefits to seniors—in her article in USA Today.

The bottom line is that seniors with IRAs have more options this year than usual. You’ll want to explore those options with a trusted advisor and take advantage in whatever way you can.