End of Year Giving
During the holiday season, most of us tend to get caught up in finding the perfect gifts for our friends and family. While showering our loved ones with presents is great, this is a perfect time of year to start thinking of how you can help local and national organizations near you.
What is your budget?
Is this your first year giving to a charity, or are you a seasoned veteran? No matter what you can make sure a charity you believe in receives a donation this year. First, you need to determine what you can afford to give. Make sure you’re leaving a donation that works for your budget, you want to make sure you’re still able to pay for all of your day-to-day expenses.
You also want to make sure what you’re leaving in the donation works for the charity. If it’s a smaller donation, maybe look to a smaller, more local organization, it might go further at a smaller organization. No matter how much you plan on donating this year, remember that any dollar amount makes a difference to an organization.
What are you passionate about?
Maybe you want to help support the arts, health and medicine, or STEM programs for schools in your state, you can find a charity that shares your passion. However, you should do your research. Find an organization whose mission statement and goals that fit with your own.
Do you have an estate plan?
Remember, that with a proper estate plan you can set up specific donations to organizations – whether that is a specific dollar amount or a percentage of your net worth. You can make sure you are leaving funds to organizations you are passionate about, in addition to your yearly donations.
Mary K. Hilger
Cheating Spouse
I think that my wife is having an affair can I track her vehicle and/or cell phone?
Answer: It depends:
Private citizens are allowed to use GPS tracking devices or software only on cars they own or co-own.
If you do not own the vehicle or co-owned the vehicle only Michigan police officer’s, bondsman, and private investigators are exempt from the state law banning individuals from placing GPS devices on cars, they do not own or co-own.
For cell phones, the same general theory applies, the cell phone plan must be in the individual’s name or have both spouses’ names on the account. You may also be able to track another phone through Find My iPhone if you have the iPhone identification and access to the account.
A divorce outside of Michigan made national headlines when the husband used in illegal GPS tracking device on his wife’s car. Using the device, he tracked her movements 99 times during a six-month period. As a result, he was eventually sentenced to eight months in jail on charges of felony stalking.
Please contact Thacker Sleight PC in the event that you are seeking to utilize GPS tracking devices. The unauthorized use of tracking devices can result in criminal charges.
