Tag: updates

62% of Millennials now allocate at least one-third of their wealth to cryptocurrencies, and a 2025 executive order is expected to accelerate inclusion of digital assets in ERISA-governed retirement plans. The pace of adoption is outrunning the pace of planning. Full story here: https://heirsearch.com/how-digital-assets-have-impacted-estate-planning-in-2025/

University of Birmingham research shows people want granular control over their digital assets after death — permitting access to those they trust, not necessarily legal heirs — revealing a fundamental disconnect between traditional inheritance frameworks and actual human wishes. New model laws are being developed that would be the first to distinguish between digital assets…

As AI enables digital recreations of deceased individuals, estate plans in 2026 now need to address not just digital assets but the “digital self” — whether private data can be used in a digital afterlife the person never authorized. New York has already moved: Senate Bill S8391 now requires prior consent from a deceased performer’s…

The U.S. enacted its first federal digital asset statute in July 2025. The GENIUS Act creates a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins, with implementing regulations due by July 2026. The estate planning implication is significant: stablecoin assets now have a clearer legal identity, which directly affects how they’re classified and transferred in digital…

January 6, 2026 https://www.pashmanstein.com/publication-estate-planning-in-2026-new-year-new-digital-age-trusts-estates-and-elder-law-newsletter