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When a person is assigned as a power of attorney (POA), they have a huge amount of authority when it comes to the principal's estate. POAs have the power to make business and medical decisions if the principal becomes mentally incapacitated.

When a person passes away, it is the job of the executor to deal with all aspects of the deceased person's estate. The executor is usually named in the deceased person's will.

The months after the passing of a loved one can be an emotional time full of stress, grief and sadness. Many estate disputes arise during this period, and often people act in an emotionally charged way. Sadly, rifts between family members can easily be created.

It's never too early to start thinking about planning your estate. If you are a young adult, it's likely that you don't have a lot of assets, and therefore you may think that planning your estate is unnecessary at this stage in your life.

You have an altruistic dream that you genuinely believe could benefit humanity, solve a local crisis or address a global challenge -- and you want to raise money, get grants, and put your dream into action! A non-profit organization may be the way to go.

It's an honor to be appointed as executor of a loved one's estate. The problem is many who are appointed to that role only do it one time. Many are ill-informed about their responsibilities and make mistakes as they carry out their assigned duties.

If you have recently lost a loved one, you will know that emotions can become tense during the grieving period. As well as going through the emotional process of grieving, it is possible that you will also have to deal with the emotional aspects of the bereavement.

No business wants to become involved in a dispute. Not only can it be costly from a financial perspective, but it can also damage public perceptions of the organization, increase internal conflicts and distract from the key business goals.

You and your partner have been together for the last 20 years. You were both coming out of other marriages -- via divorce -- when you met. You agreed that, while you were committed to each other, you did not want to get married again. It did not seem worth it to go through the whole process.

When Aretha Franklin passed away last August, it appeared that she had no estate plan -- despite the fact that she had significant assets, including her music catalog and memorabilia, which are likely worth millions of dollars. She is survived by four sons as well as grandchildren and other family members.