Cincinnati Legal Blog

Those who become incapacitated for any reason may not be able to manage their finances. However, Ohio residents and others can create a financial power of attorney to resolve this problem. A financial power of attorney is a person or entity who is allowed to conduct various transactions on an incapacitated person's behalf. Without such a document, family members may need to go to court to get permission to manage that individual's money.

A power of attorney can either be durable or springing in nature. A durable power of attorney lasts until a person dies or revokes the power granted to an agent. Springing powers of attorney generally go into effect after a doctor certifies that a person is truly incapacitated. The powers granted to an agent can be as narrow or broad as an individual wants them to be.

People in Ohio thinking about the future may want to do their best to ensure that their loved ones are cared for after they are gone. To that end, they may make out a will and develop an estate plan. While people often think about real estate, bank accounts and other tangible or financial items when planning for the future, they may pay less attention to digital assets like email accounts, social media profiles, online subscriptions or even cryptocurrency wallets. People are spending more time and money online than ever before, but making an estate plan for these digital assets is often overlooked.

While a growing number of states are attempting to address confusion by adopting uniform laws for the default handling of the digital assets of people who pass away, many people want to make their own plans for the future. They can include their digital assets in their wills, trusts and powers of attorney in order to do so. The process of developing a digital estate plan begins with gathering an inventory of a person's digital existence, including various online accounts as well as key files and hardware like computers, smartphones or tablets.

Divorce can happen at any stage of life. Older couples, even those who have been married for years, sometimes go through what many call gray divorce. When a couple with one or two partners aged 50 and up decides to move forward with divorce, there are unique financial factors to consider.

If you are facing a gray divorce, your future is at stake. With fewer years before retirement and potentially valuable assets up for division, you would be wise to be thoughtful and careful as you make choices that could affect your future. Emotions should never be the catalyst for your decisions, but rather, you would be wise to keep your focus on what is truly important – your long-term interests.

There are many things Ohio residents need to think about during a divorce, including their credit scores. Fortunately, divorce alone does not hurt a credit score. Credit reports are not influenced by one's marital status. However, there are two common reasons a divorce might lead to a lower credit score.

After a divorce, joint credit accounts can still appear on credit reports. This applies even if a former partner has responsibility for paying off the debt. If an ex makes late payments, these payments apply to each person's credit report. Additionally, both parties are responsible for charges made from a joint account even after a divorce occurs.