A beneficiary deed is used to transfer real estate upon your death, without the necessity of  probate.  The Colorado legislature passed the law authorizing the use of beneficiary deeds on May 12, 2004 and the law took effect on August 4, 2004. This law was enacted so that people who have a small estate that […]

By Tamra K. Waltemath, P.C.  ~ Adults in Colorado have the legal right to consent to or refuse medical treatment under the Patient Self-Determination Act of 1990.  You may make your wishes regarding medical treatment known by utilizing advance medical directives.  Advance medical directives include a Declaration as to Medical or Surgical Treatment (often referred […]

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday. I want to thank you for your continued support, especially the last two years during the pandemic.  I hope you and your families are well and have had no health emergencies. Many people have died in the last two years, over 800,000 in […]

By Tamra K. Waltemath, P.C. ~ “Can I get a power of attorney for my parent?”  People call my office and ask this question quite often, so my assistant asked me to write an article about the issues involved in answering this question.  We don’t know if your parent wants to appoint you to act […]

By Tamra K. Waltemath, P.C. ~ What is estate planning?  Estate planning is a process in which an attorney helps a client to make a written plan to pass on their assets at their death by taking into account the laws of wills, taxes, insurance, property and trusts to maximize the benefit of all laws […]

By Tamra K. Waltemath, P.C. ~ If someone dies without a Will, his or her assets will be devised pursuant to the laws of the state in which the decedent was domiciled at death. If real estate was owned by the decedent, and it is not located in the state where the decedent was domiciled […]

~ By Tamra K. Waltemath ~ Maybe you have decided that this is the year you are going to get organized or get rid of some clutter.  As an attorney, I create a lot of paperwork and I review a lot of paperwork.  Clients often ask me how long to keep certain documents and how often […]

The Living Will is also referred to as the Advance Directive for Medical/Surgical Treatment. This advance directive allows adults who have decisional capacity to set forth their written decisions as to the acceptance or rejection of life-sustaining procedures if at some future time, he or she has a terminal condition or is in a persistent […]

The person signing the power of attorney which gives someone else the authority to act for them is called the “principal” and the person who is given the power to act for you is called your “agent.” The agents authority pursuant to a powers of attorney ceases at the death of the principal. Powers of […]

In many cases where a Will is contested, the claim of “undue influence” is presented as grounds for asking the Court to invalidate a Last Will and Testament (“Will”).   Undue influence has been proved where at the time of preparation or execution of the Will, a beneficiary of such Will was actively involved in […]

I have had many clients ask me if they should put their children on the deed to their home.  This is not a good idea.  You must understand that if you sign a Quitclaim Deed, and you record that deed or deliver it to the grantee on the deed, you are giving away an interest […]

I would like to thank all of you who have retained my services this year, or who have recommended me to another.  I appreciate your business.  This was a difficult year for all of us.  If you have lost a loved one to COVID-19, my heart goes out to you.  I have had many clients […]

Medicaid is a federal medical assistance program for low-income people, which is administered by the state.   In Colorado, Health First Colorado administers our Medicaid Program.  Health First Colorado is funded jointly by a federal-state partnership and is administered by the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.  Medicaid is public health insurance for those […]