You must adhere to state estate planning laws if you wish to incorporate an RTDD into your estate plan. This helps to ensure the validity of your documents and makes them legally enforceable. Regarding an RTDD, you’ll want to make sure to address several issues in detail.
To ensure validity of an RTDD, remember to check each issue shown in the following list:
It’s always best to ask a Notary Public to witness your signature. After you have notarized the document, you must file it at the county clerk’s office. If you do not carry out each of these tasks, then your RTDD will not be valid.
An RTDD is a revocable document. This means that you can change its instructions at any time, provided you are of sound mind when you sign the update. In other words, if you wish to add or remove a beneficiary, you can do so. Another benefit to using an RTDD to transfer property is that the beneficiary’s creditors cannot place a lien against the property until it becomes effective, which occurs when you die.
Executing an RTDD is typically a less expensive estate planning tool than initiating a trust or a last will and testament. It is also less time consuming, especially if you wish to transfer property that you own in another state. In Texas, you may transfer property through an RTDD even if you still owe a mortgage. However, you’ll want to make sure that you continue to make mortgage payments on time throughout your life and that the beneficiary understands that he or she will become responsible for the debt when the RTDD takes effect.
]]>When you sign a valid contract with one of your suppliers, you create a legally enforceable document. It is critical for every person who signs a specific contract to fully understand its contents, as well as the obligations implied by the same. When all signature parties understand and agree to the terms of a vendor contract, there is less room for confusion or disputes.
When you’re preparing to execute a vendor contract, keep the following key issues in mind to help you create a solid agreement:
Keeping detailed records of all vendor contracts, as well as all correspondence between your business and your distributors or suppliers helps lower the risk for business disputes. Remember, the more detailed and precise a contract is, the less room there is for disputes. Ambiguity, vagueness and lack of detail place vendor contracts in a high-risk category for business disputes.
To initiate the dispute resolution process, you must first make sure you have correctly identified the cause of the dispute. Was it miscommunication, human error or a breach of contract? From there, you can negotiate a solution using whatever dispute resolution option best fits your needs, including mediation, arbitration or litigation. To ensure that you employthe most viable option to protect your business interests, it is helpful to enlist support from an experienced negotiator who can review your contract and guide you through the dispute resolution process.
]]>Articles of incorporation, otherwise known as a corporate charter, are documents that establish your corporation in your state. Such documents must provide certain information about the corporation you have created. This information includes details about the identity of your business, as well as its operations.
When you file articles of incorporation for a new Texas business, you must include the name of your company, as well as the physical address to which you have it registered. You do not have to list the names or addresses of the incorporators, only the business itself. You will also want to include information regarding the number of shares in your corporation.
The number of shares in your company depends on whether you register as a C or S corporation. If you haven’t gotten that far in your business formation plan yet, then you are not quite ready to file articles of incorporation. However, if you’ve already registered as one or the other, then you will either have an unlimited number of shares (for a C corporation) or up to 100 shares (for an S corporation).
The Texas Secretary of State’s office is the proper place to file articles of corporation when you are incorporating a business in this state. In addition to company name and address, you’ll also want to add the name and contact information for the acting agent, meaning the individual who will receive official documents on the company’s behalf.
Whether you must also include a specific business purpose depends on your tax status. In some cases, you might be able to file articles of incorporation under “general purposes” for a new business. In certain circumstances, you might have to state a more specific purpose.
Filing articles of incorporation is just one step of many that you must take to launch a new corporation in Texas. If legal complications arise during business formation, it is best to have access to someone who is well-versed in state laws who can provide guidance and support.
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