Iowa Estate Plan

As a result of the struggle a family endured in seeking Social Security benefits for a child conceived through in vitro fertilization two years after her biological father died of leukemia, the current Iowa legislature is looking at a bill to provide some legal rights for children conceived after a parent dies. The current bill is taking into consideration some of the issues raised by the Iowa State Bar Association, such as obtaining necessary consent from the contributing parent as well as a limited time period. Jason Clayworth of the Des Moines Register had a recent article as he continues to follow the story.

In a follow-up to a recent post I had on the Iowa Law Blog, Jason Clayworth of the Des Moines Register recently updated the situation concerning a young girl's application for social security benefits as a result of her father's death. A federal judge has overturned the rejection of benefits and thus permits her to receive benefits. The article continues to point out that legislators are examining long overdue updates to the Iowa statute to address these types of situations. The Social Security Administration has until January 11, 2010 to appeal. The complexities that are involved in cases like this are challenging. A recent Probate Section meeting of the Iowa State Bar began to examine some of the issues and an approach to take with this issue. The discussion revealed that there is a split in the probate section as a result of numerous questions and possible approaches. Beyond the basic philosophical question of is this "right", there other other related matt...

An Iowan is struggling with the definition of heir under the Iowa Probate Code. In order to qualify as an "heir" under Iowa law, you must have been conceived prior to the death of the biological parent. This has been the definition of an "heir" for 150 years. However, with advances in medical science, it is now possible that a child can be conceived after death through fertilization from frozen sperm. Still a child right? Wrong, under Iowa intestate law and for social security benefits. Despite the same result, social security administration has ruled that being conceived after death is not the same as being conceived before death of the biological parent. As a result, the child, who has her father's DNA and is in fact the biological daughter of her father, will not be able to reap the benefits of her father's social security benefits, as other children would, that he contributed to during his life. Due to a split in the circuit courts, expect to see ...

I recently attended a seminar sponsored by A.G. Edwards concerning the timing of receiving social security benefits and the impact on retirement planning. Individuals are entitled to begin receiving social security benefits as early as age 62, although at a reduced rate. If the individual waits until the full benefit age (currently 65) the recipient will be entitled to receive their full benefits for the remainder of their life. Thus the question is "do I want some money now, but a in smaller amounts? Or do I wait a few more years and get the maximum monthly payment?" To keep things interesting, there are earnings limitations if a person elects to get their social security benefits prior to their full benefit age. Every situation is different and there isn't a right or wrong answer as to when you should choose to start receiving social security benefits. Your financial planner can guide you on the ideal timing issues for your particular situation and the impact for ...