Yesterday, July 23, the testimony portion of the Sterling versus Sterling Probate trial concluded. While I have written a few posts regarding this proceeding I feel that it is important to stay up to date with such a sensationalized probate matter (with that is mind, I will do my best to keep this brief). During the conclusion of yesterday’s time in court, Donald’s attorneys opted out of calling his estranged wife, Shelly Sterling, to the stand. Instead they brought forward a neurologist who testified that the stress caused by having Shelly present during the doctor’s evaluation of Donald affected the outcome of their conclusions.

Closing arguments are set to be heard this coming Monday, July 28, and as it has been up to now, the conclusion of the court proceedings are predicted to be a ‘fight till the finish.’

Workout fads seem to come and go faster than top songs on the radio, however a recent development in the realm of yoga just might be worth a second look. The up and coming Yin Yoga features poses in the sitting or lying down position that are held for ten minutes at a time. Yin Yoga classes are a much slower pace than the more well-known hatha and vinyasa styles. Hatha yoga involves poses held for a minute or so, while vinyasa involves a series of repeated poses that cycle through standing, sitting, and laying poses with transitional movements at a much faster pace. Yin Yoga on the other hand involves a few poses held for long periods of time, while students are asked to relax their minds, and allow gravity to do the stretching for them.

The hearing regarding the Trust of Donald and Shelly Sterling has been recessed until July 21, leaving the validity of the sale of NBA Clippers team up in the air until then. The ongoing turmoil associated with the Sterling estate went public in April after TMZ released tapes of Donald Sterling making racist remarks (the tapes had been recorded by then girlfriend Vanessa Stiviano). Sterling was then fined and banned for life by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, and later pressured to sell the team. In mid May it became public that Mrs. Sterling had signed divorce papers, but had not filed them, and Donald began the battle to maintain control and ownership of the LA Clippers.

While many people are intimidated by the literal and emotional process of creating a will or managing their estate, even fewer long to tackle the task of maintaining these legal documents. Unfortunately this can result in very costly mistakes, and few realize that the terms of their IRA supersedes what they have outlined within their will. So if your will designates a certain individual as your beneficiary and the terms of your IRA designate a different individual, the IRA will outrank your will despite which was written or adjusted last. It is vital for the account holder to be aware of life changes that consequently require adjustments to be made to their will or IRA terms.

An example of the losses that can be associated with making such a mistake is management of Leonard Smith’s IRA inheritance before and after his death. Smith worked up until his time of death (in 2008) with financial advisors and attorneys in order to insure that his children would receive the balance of his retirement fund. A year after his passing, family members discovered that Smith’s IRA beneficiary form had one mistake on it, making the document invalid. This in turn made his surviving spouse the sole beneficiary by default. Although his children fought to maintain their inheritance in court, the judge ruled that the $400,000 IRA would be awarded to Smith’s wife.