Forum Moderators: martinibuster
If I died today, I guess the monthly payments would keep arriving until Google figures out I no longer exist and closes my account.
I'm especially interested in the plans of anyone else in my situation. I'm single, no children (no heirs) and since I'm spending yet another Friday night working on my computer instead of being out on a date, I don't think that circumstance is going to change any time soon.
FarmBoy
we'll ask your heirs for any necessary official documentation and will be more than willing to work with them on a case-by-case basis to ensure that everything is handled in the way you specify
Thanks ASA for coming back to us, but a little more detail please:
1- Upon your notification, will ad serving be stopped from your side or it will continue.
2- Should I ask my family to put payment on hold?
3- Is it possible to spare them the pain of a new account and ad code switching once you have received all your required documentation?
4- If it is like many of us an unofficial business, generally what could the required documents be
(I know you said you will work it on case by case basis)
Knowing the above will make a big difference in our instructions and documentation.
Thanks
Someone should start an estate planning practice just for us Internet Business people. I would - but I'm too busy ;)
If it is like many of us an unofficial business, generally what could the required documents be
I think that's already been answered. And the answer is "your will". And/or any other documents that, in a legally-correct form, specify survivorship interest. (Such as: a trust document, corporate papers, LLC documents, etc.)
While you can have an "unofficial business" legally (it's called a "sole proprietorship" - let's hope by "unofficial business" you don't mean one that doesn't pay taxes, and stuffs the money in a mattress...) you can't have an unofficial survivorship.
An heir simply taking over your income-producing online accounts is no different than them cashing your checks after you die or making off with your best china and big-screen TV before the executor takes inventory - it's illegal, and can get one in big trouble.
You and your heir may have a little unofficial agreement, and that's nice. It's just that Aunt Sally and the IRS may not agree.
My exposure to the process is limited to dealing with my friend whose mother died with multiple, improperly-signed wills. My attorney did the probate and unraveled the mess. So, I'm just going on my fuzzy recollections.
As far as stopping payments... the executor sends death certificates to banks, insurance companies, pensions, etc. Accounts are closed, funds are sent to the trustee, who will have set-up a special account. (Or to the court? Like I said, fuzzy...) Not sure what would happen with income-producing stuff. I know my friend's mother had income-producing real-estate, and the tenants definitely started writing checks to somebody else (not Mom). This went on for a year+.
Look into LLCs. They are very flexible. I should have known about this, as I was a member of one with an unusual clause.
I was a member of an LLC that had a stock-trading business. My "partner", Jack (not his real name) was not actually a member of the LLC. His wife, who contributed the initial capital - was. Jack was the manager, but held no interest in the LLC. Jack was concerned about his family's history of heart disease, and worried that his wife would survive him, and he wanted the business to be able to support her in the event of his death.
I wrote the software, and Jack did the trading. I could do the trading if I had to (but could then write little software in my spare time...), but Jack's wife could do neither. I had a 25% interest, and Jack's wife had a 75% interest. But in the event of Jack's death, I would then have a 49% interest, and Jack's wife's interest would be reduced to 51%. I would become the manager.
Seems counter-intuitive, right? The rationale was that I could do the trading for a while to keep the business going, and then hire somebody to do the trading. Jack's wife couldn't have known who to hire to do the trading, nor manage it. He put a lot of thought into how best to insure income for his wife in the event of his death.
A good attorney (and tax adviser - thank your for pointing-out that omission) can tailor a strategy for your particular situation. There are many.
Writing down passwords, putting them in a safe place, and making sure the right people know about it is prudent. But it isn't a plan for survivorship any more than a mattress full of money is.
(This thread probably belongs in "Professional Webmaster Business Issues". Forrest. Trees.)
Someone should start an estate planning practice just for us Internet Business people. I would - but I'm too busy ;)
I guess what I'm suggesting is that it's even more important to find an attorney who knows estate planning for businesses than it is to find one who specifically knows about internet business - after all, you can fill them in on that. But I doubt if the two have to be mutually exclusive. When I worked for the law firm, one of their main clients was a small phone company that was starting to branch out into cable - I'd be surprised if they weren't dealing with internet business issues by now, and I'd bet that a lot of other estate planning attorneys are, too.
[edited by: Beagle at 2:25 pm (utc) on Oct. 30, 2007]
A Leave everything to my clone (with memories).
B If clone not available yet leave everything to my robot that houses my brain.
C If robot not available yet, parking space next to Walt Disney.
The general consensus among everyone else was "over my dead corpse". We don't want some unknown entity - corporate or non-profit or whatever - to fiddle with our passwords and accounts after we die. Most agreed that it behooves anyone with a web business to set up their own contingency plans to handle the business, especially if the business is supporting children and families. One close associate had already arranged that her online assets were willed to a trusted friend who would absorb her online assets and devote the profits from them to raise her children. Smart!
Only my spouse knows where my passwords are kept. She knows how to use them. But in the event of a tragedy involving both of us, I have many close friends in the industry who would be willing and able to take my online assets and manage them in a way that benefits my heirs. Still it would be sensible to put my wishes down on paper and get it notarized or whatever
As a webmaster, business owner, husband and father, this thread is a wake-up call
