Market Watcher:  “An approximately $30 trillion transfer of wealth is currently under way in the U.S. as aging baby boomers pass their assets to successive generations.This transfer, together with the recent increase to the lifetime federal estate and gift tax exemption (to $11.18 million in 2018), has created a favorable situation for U.S. citizens and residents seeking to transfer wealth to their loved ones during lifetime and at death. Despite the encouraging estate planning horizon, we still see many who make common mistakes which can thwart their intentions.“

Market Watch:  “Restaurateur Cecilia Chiang retired in 1991 from her business but you can still find her cooking at home or enjoying meals at restaurants in her neighborhood.The 98-year-old is well-known for her Mandarin Restaurant in San Francisco, which she opened in 1961 and sold in 1991. She received the James Beard Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013, was featured in the book “200 Women: Who Will Change the Way You See the World” and was the subject of a PBS documentary called “Soul of a Banquet.”

Financial Advisor Magazine:  “Almost all clients begin thinking at some point about how they are going to be remembered when they’re gone. Many think specifically about the legacy they will be leaving. But legacy is an odd thing. I would argue that the concept is somewhat selfish. We wish to direct it, but we actually have little control over it. Various people in our lives often get to determine how we will be remembered, basing it somewhat on their interactions with us but mostly on their own views of the world.”

Bloomberg:  “For some, it means liberation. For others, loss. For women in particular, the doubling of the divorce rate for the 50-plus crowd since the 1990s can mean something far more prosaic: a need to shoulder the big financial decisions they’d let their spouses deal with when they were married. Often, they find some nasty surprises after he’s gone. A majority of married women—56 percent—still leave major investing and financial planning decisions to their spouse.”

The New York Times:  “Stan Lee, one of the inspirational founts that gave birth to the modern Marvel Universe and characters such as Blank Panther, Spider Man, and the X-Men, has always lived in a world populated by all-power villains and valiant heroes. But, these characters are imaginary. Today though, Lee is rumored to have attracted a following of real-life villains set on siphoning his wealth while keeping him a prisoner in his own home. After the death of his wife, Joan Lee, suspicions arose concerning Lee’s dwindling bank accounts and there were even some reports that a former associate stole his blood to sell to fans.“

Fox News:  “A Kentucky man who died last summer willed a local animal shelter just over $190,000, according to local reports. Joseph “Tony” Bennett left Madison County Animal Shelter in Berea $190,897.27, LEX 18 reported.“

The New York Times:  “Prince Rogers Nelson was found dead in an elevator in Paisley Park at the age of 57. A toxicology report revealed high concentrations of fentanyl in the singer’s blood, stomach, and liver. Though fentanyl is a legal prescription, it is often used to manufacture knock-off pills, like oxycodone and other painkillers, that are sold on the black market. Minnesota law enforcement announced Thursday that no one would be charged for Prince’s death as they could not determine who actually provided the drug that killed him. Mark Metz, a Carver county attorney, said that they “ have no direct evidence that a specific person provided the fentanyl to Prince.”

The Washington Post:  “My wife says that I love my work too much to ever retire. Perhaps she is right. However, my experiences as a neurologist and clinical director of an Alzheimer center have led me to think a lot about the circumstances under which it would be wise to move on. In fact, having reached my 60s — thereby joining the fastest-growing segment of our population — I have been considering what changes in my cognitive capacity would lead me to no longer wish to keep on working.”

The New York TImes:  “Sue Ellen King worked as a nursing educator and critical care nurse at University of Florida Health for almost four decades. Her co-workers kindly joked that she had been at the hospital since the foundation was laid, which happened to be true. King was ready. She circled her last work day on the calendar and took a week-long trip with her husband to celebrate her upcoming freedom. But, when she actually transitioned into retirement, King found that her carefully crafted post-work experience had fallen flat. “I’d done all the preparation, except to really think about what life was going to be like,” King said. After only three months, she returned to work in a part-time position at the hospital.”

FOX News:  “Authorities have charged a North Carolina couple with cheating dozens of grief-stricken families out of thousands of dollars for headstones they failed to deliver. Tunis and Georganne Selby were arrested this week and charged with felony conversion and obtaining property by false pretense, Monroe police said. The couple, who ran a company called Memorial Design Concepts, was accused of swindling 34 families out of $64,000 for the monuments, FOX46 Charlotte reported.”

Caring.com:  “Sundown syndrome is a term that describes the onset of confusion and agitation that generally affects people with dementia or cognitive impairment and usually strikes around sunset. Many people, though, use the term to loosely describe increased agitation and confusion that can occur anytime but may be more noticeable in the late afternoon or early evening.”

FOX News:  “The family of a Humbolt Broncos hockey player who was on a bus when it slammed into a semitrailer in western Canada– killing 15– said he was taken off life support and his organs will be donated, The Global News reported. Logan Boulet, 21, a defenseman, was put on life-support on Saturday and his family said his organs would be harvested and six matches have been found.”

Westlaw:  “Contemplating death is not a pleasant experience for most people. However, for the transgender community, it is becoming increasingly more important to consider from an estate planning perspective. Throughout their lives, transgender people face numerous challenges regarding their identities. These challenges can continue after a transgender individual's death if he or she is not buried according to their gender identity. Transgender individuals run the risk of having their surviving family members bury them in an undignified manner if the transgender individual passes away without specifically documenting instructions for their burial.”

TMZ:  “Rudy Giuliani and his wife, Judith, are heading for splitsville after 15 years of marriage … TMZ has confirmed. The former Mayor of NYC and his wife tied in the knot in 2003, but Judith filed paperwork to end the matrimony … and it appears she's ready to battle over their assets because she reportedly filed a contested divorce proceeding in Manhattan Supreme Court.”

Fox News:  “A Colorado woman’s house was ransacked last week after throngs of people were reportedly led to believe it was the site of an estate sale. Mary Andrews told the Daily Camera she left her Longmont home unlocked Friday and, when she returned, she found people walking out with things from inside.“

Private Wealth:  “JPMorgan Chase & Co. will probably face a judgment of no more than $90 million in a lawsuit claiming mismanagement of an estate that initially brought a jury verdict of $8 billion in punitive damages.“

Bloomberg Pursuits:  “Art dealer W. Graham Arader specializes in antique maps, books, and prints, and he has a side interest in antique houses. “I own the seventh-oldest house in San Francisco,” he says, “I own the only pristine beaux-arts mansion on Madison Avenue, and I own George Washington’s home in Virginia.” Also in his possession is a 19th century Victorian house in Nyack, N.Y. Arader bought the home, roughly a 40-minute drive from Manhattan, for about $6 million in 2005. “I bought it for the beauty of the house,” he says. “I’m an art dealer. I like things that are beautiful, plus I bought it for my seven children to use on the weekends.”

JDSUPRA:  “Perhaps encouraged by the recent decision in Marasse Estate, we have another recent case from the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench addressing an estate’s ability to claim spousal support and its liability to pay spousal support.  Stalzer v Stalzer, 2018 ABQB 191 is reassurance to estate planning and family law practitioners that a person’s obligation to pay spousal support to their deceased ex-spouse’s estate is not a general rule of law and was specific to the drafting of the various agreements in play in Marasse.”

The New York Times:  “The idea of a typical American funeral tends to elicit images of a polished, wood coffin, bouquets of delicate flowers resting nearby, and the musty, darkened chapel where family and friend will gather to mourn. A question that many are now asking is: “How necessary are all these accoutrements?” Markets have responded to the query, albeit minimally at this stage, with the “green burial.”