Kirk Kaplan
Crest Key Legal and Accounting Partners
Every estate plan will be implemented, even the one you fail to create. Your goal should be to create a plan to speak for you when you cannot toward maintaining harmony among everyone important to you and minimizing the most likely unintended beneficial interest in your estate - lawyers.
I am passionate about helping people create and enforce their estate plan with a focus to exclude lawyer predators. Here is why: My over 20 years of practicing law and accounting has revealed a common theme that runs through all trust litigation--legal formality during incapacity and after death OFTEN UNDERMINES family understandings that predatory lawyers exploit. Failing to account for family understandings many times causes catastrophic plan failures that unintentionally favor a child to the detriment of other children and their attorneys, and usually causes significant financial and psychological strain on all involved. For example, people are surprised to find out provisions in a trust to protect a child from a creditor like a credit card company will be used by that child as a reason not to repay amounts the child owes a parent after the parent dies. Situations like this are addressed in estate plans clients create with me. Attorneys for these children also advocate the anti alienation clause does not apply and therefore should be paid from the trust estate. We address this issue head-in to prevent lawyers from benefiting from your estate.
A significant part of estate planning is helping people discover and address family understandings to eliminate or mitigate family distress after death. Find a firm with litigation and accounting experience that brings strategic and analytical focus to bear dispensing with clutter towards finding solutions with clear direction for your estate plan to mitigate common traps and reduce or eliminate potential challenges so your interests are protected now and in the future.
- Probate
- Probate Administration, Probate Litigation, Will Contests
- Estate Planning
- Guardianship & Conservatorship Estate Administration, Health Care Directives, Trusts, Wills
- Tax Law
- Business Taxes, Criminal Tax Litigation, Estate Tax Planning, Income Taxes, International Taxes, Payroll Taxes, Property Taxes, Sales Taxes, Tax Appeals, Tax Audits, Tax Planning
- Business Law
- Business Contracts, Business Dissolution, Business Finance, Business Formation, Business Litigation, Franchising, Mergers & Acquisitions, Partnership & Shareholder Disputes
- Trust Litigation
- Free Consultation
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Credit Cards Accepted
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- Colorado
- Colorado Supreme Court
- ID Number: 28498
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- Nevada
- State Bar of Nevada
- ID Number: 5685
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- English
- Senior Associate
- Jones Vargas
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- Estate, Probate and Taxation.
- Western Michigan University Cooley Law School
- J.D. (1996)
- Honors: Cum Laude
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- Regis University
- B.S. (1986) | Accounting and Business Administration
- Honors: Cum Laude
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- AV Preeminent Rated
- Martindale-Hubbell
- Top Lawyer
- Desert Companion Magazine
- Colorado Bar Association Public And Legal Services
- Member
- - Current
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- Nevada State Bar # 5685
- Member
- - Current
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- American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
- Member
- - Current
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- Nevada Society of Certified Public Accountants
- Member
- - Current
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- Estate Planning in Nevada
- DC Publications
- Sale of Probate Property in Probate, Guardianship and Powers of Attorney, FIRPTA, las Vegas, Nevda
- Crest Key Legal and Accounting Sponsored
- Best practicus to expedite sales of real property and minimize court involvement.
- Probate In Nevada and Foreign Investment In Real Property Transfer Act, Las Vegas
- Fidelity National Title Company
- Certified Public Accountant
- Nevada State Board of Accountancy
- Website
- Crest Key
Crest Key
Introduction to Kirk D. Kaplan and Crest Key.
Crest Key: Nevada Probate Services Explained
Crest Key: Nevada Probate Services Explained.
How to Protect Your Las Vegas Property Before & After the Sale
How to protect your Las Vegas property before and after sale.
Community Property and Vesting on Real Property in the Las Vegas Valley
Community Property and Vesting on Real Property.
Real Estate 101 Tips for International Investors in Las Vegas
Tips for International Investors In Las Vegas.
- Q. In Nevada, when determining the estate value, does that include the house that is going to surviving spouse?
- A: Probate is about clearing title of the name of the deceased from property the deceased owned individually - not with someone else like Joint tenancy WROS, so the answer is no.
- Q. Is it better to file a quitclaim deed or to buy my mom’s house?
- A: Neither is a good idea. The first reason is quitclaim deed is just a method of transfer of real property - it alone does not trigger a tax savings technique. Sale of the residence for a minimal amount will trigger a gift subject to gift tax reporting for any value sold for less than the FMV (usually determined by obtaining an actual appraisal - not a broker estimate). Then, and only then will you received her basis in the property - usually what she bought it for. So for example you purchase the house from her for $10 and the FMV of the house is $200,000, you mother will have a gift ax reporting requirement the IRS of $183,890 (200,000-10-16,000 annual exclusion). To obtain actual tax saving advise and effective methods of "making sure [you] get the house" you should consider seeing an estate planning attorney who has tax knowledge (like who also is CPA). I wish you well.
- Q. Does a living trust destroy a joint tenancy in Nevada?
- A: A joint tenant creating as revocable living trust along does not destroy a joint tenancy. What destroys the joint tenancy is a joint tenancy drafting a deed removing his/her interest as a joint tenant. So the action of joint tenant signing a deed (s/he along can sign) conveying a her/his interest to her/his living trust or to any other person or entity is what breaks the joint tenancy.
