Author: Scott A. Makuakane, Counselor at Law, Est8Planning Counsel LLLC

  • Choosing a Dignified Death

    A Provider Order regarding Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) says what measures should be used to keep you alive in a medical emergency. It is different from an Advance Directive in that it will be followed by emergency personnel, provided that they are aware of its existence. If you don’t have a POLST, emergency medical technicians…

  • Making the Rules Beyond Your Lifetime

    How do you stay in control of your stuff while you are able and assure that your wishes will be carried out when incapacity or the grim reaper catch up with you? Sorry to rub it in, but at least one of these possibilities is going to happen to you and odds are that both…

  • Estate of Mind

    Remember the classic Abbott and Costello comedy routine, “Who’s on First?” The longer they banter, the more their  frustration grows due to their seeming lack of understanding of the game they are discussing — and hilarity ensues. Similarly, the language of estate planning can give rise to problems for the uninitiated, but the problems that…

  • Estate Taxes: What’s Around the Corner?

    After spending a lifetime of earning, saving and investing — and paying income and capital gains taxes all the way along — you may wonder why our government feels entitled to tax the value of what’s left when you die. However, the IRS and the State of Hawai‘i both want a piece of your estate.

  • Family Business Succession Basics

    Only about 25 percent of family businesses survive for 15 years or more, and only about 25 percent of the “survivors” will survive the transition to the next generation. There are many contributing factors.

  • Give While You Live

    Making gifts to your loved ones during your lifetime will enable you to see how your beneficiaries handle newfound wealth. This could be a great way to “test drive” your estate plan and determine how well it works while you are still able to make adjustments. If one beneficiary turns out to be a poor…

  • Make Plans to Win the Game of Life

    Winning the game of life — and death — depends on having an effective plan in place before the inevitable happens. If you do not have an advance healthcare directive, your loved ones may find themselves blindsided and sidelined at the precise moment you need them to step in and make medical decisions for you.

  • Your Estate Plan: What NOT to Do

    Problems with your estate plan may not become apparent until it is too late to fix them. Here are some common pitfalls: • Failing to plan for large expenses, such as long-term care. • Failing to update your estate plan, including beneficiary designations on bank accounts, investment accounts, retirement accounts and insurance policies. • Failing…

  • Passing on the Family Business

    Only about 25 percent of  family businesses survive 15 years or more. Only about 25 percent of those will survive the transition to the founders’ descendants. Many factors contribute to these statistics. Here are two critical factors.

  • What is a Trust?

    A trust is created when a person transfers “stuff” to a trustee who will manage the stuff for the benefit of one or more beneficiaries. “Stuff” includes real property — such as land and buildings — and personal property — such as bank accounts, stocks and bonds, and personal effects. The person who transfers the…