Larry King passed away in January due to complications with COVID-19. At the time, he was in the middle of a divorce from his seventh wife, Shawn. His net worth is estimated to be some $144 million. Shawn has been adamant that the pair have had an estate plan in place for many years. However, last month, a holographic will was found.

From proposals for new inheritance taxes to new consumer privacy laws, we have recently seen some significant developments in estate planning and business law. To ensure that you stay abreast of these legal changes, we have highlighted some noteworthy developments and analyzed how they may impact your estate planning and business law practice.

Federal law demands that states attempt to recover amounts expended on certain beneficiaries receiving Medicaid benefits. (See 42 U.S. Code § 1396p(b)) Namely, a state must attempt estate recovery for individuals who were aged 55 and up when they received benefits to pay for nursing home care, home and community-based services, and related hospital and prescription drug services.

Federal law defines estate as “all real and personal property and other assets included within the individual’s estate, as defined for purposes of State probate law.” However, the definition goes on to say that each state may pass laws to widen this definition, to include “any other real and personal property and other assets in which the individual had any legal title or interest at the time of death (to the extent of such interest), including such assets conveyed to a survivor, heir, or assign of the deceased individual through joint tenancy, tenancy in common, survivorship, life estate, living trust, or other arrangement.” If a state has passed such a law, then that state has expanded estate recovery.