C&O Law Group

08/04/2026

DO YOU HAVE CRYPTOCURRENCY? If you do then your estate plan may already be outdated.
Many people own Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other digital assets without realizing that their family may never be able to access them after they pass away.
Unlike a traditional bank account, cryptocurrency is often protected by private keys, seed phrases, or digital wallets. If those credentials are lost—or if no one knows they exist—the assets may be permanently inaccessible.
Here are four questions every cryptocurrency owner should ask:
• Does someone know that I own cryptocurrency?
• Is there a secure plan for accessing my digital wallet?
• Does my executor or trustee have the legal authority to manage my digital assets?
• Have I documented where my private keys or recovery information are stored without compromising security?
A will or trust alone may not be enough. A comprehensive estate plan should also address digital assets and provide your fiduciaries with the legal authority and practical guidance needed to locate and administer them.
As digital assets become a larger part of many investment portfolios, they should be an important part of your estate planning conversation—not an afterthought. Estate planning professionals increasingly recommend including cryptocurrency, digital wallets, and other online assets in a comprehensive estate plan to help ensure they are not lost to your loved ones.
If you own cryptocurrency or other digital assets and haven't updated your estate plan, now is the time to do so.
📞 C&O Law Group, LLC
🌐 DMV ESTATE PLANNING ATTORNEYS

07/09/2026

One of the biggest estate planning mistakes I see isn't an outdated will—it's outdated beneficiary designations.
Your retirement accounts, life insurance, and many financial accounts pass according to the beneficiary form—not your will.
If you've been married, divorced, had children, or simply haven't reviewed your accounts in years, now is the time.
A five-minute review today could save your family thousands of dollars and prevent unnecessary disputes later.
Approved by Natalija Stamenkovic, Esquire

06/24/2026

Should your surviving spouse be allowed to change your beneficiaries? 🕊️💼
When planning your estate, choosing how much control to leave behind is a major tradeoff between family protection and tax breaks. Here is how we break it down at C&O Law Group:

🔹 The Flexible Route: Your spouse gets full control. It maximizes capital gains tax savings for your kids (via a double "step-up in basis"), but leaves the door open for children to be disinherited if your spouse remarries.

🔹 The Protected Route: Your assets lock into an irrevocable trust. Your spouse is looked after, but your ultimate beneficiaries can never be changed—safeguarding children from prior marriages. The tradeoff? Your heirs might face higher taxes later.

A custom trust can often strike a perfect middle ground.

📥 Message us or comment below to find the right balance for your family.

06/23/2026

OCTOBER 1, 2026
For years, Maryland homeowners who wanted to avoid probate had limited options:
✅ Create a Revocable Living Trust
✅ Add a child to the deed (often a bad idea)
✅ Leave the property through a Will and go through probate
Beginning October 1, 2026, Maryland will allow Transfer-on-Death (TOD) Deeds for real estate. Under the new law, a homeowner can record a deed naming a beneficiary who automatically receives the property upon the owner's death, without the need for probate. The owner remains in full control during life and may revoke or change the deed at any time.
This post is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. See less

05/21/2026

Many people carefully plan for their home, bank accounts, and family heirlooms — but forget about one of the fastest-growing parts of modern estates: digital assets.
Your digital estate may include:
• Online banking and investment accounts
• Cryptocurrency and digital wallets
• Social media accounts
• Family photos stored in the cloud
• Email accounts
• Subscription services and reward points
• Business websites or online income streams
Without proper estate planning, your loved ones may have difficulty accessing or managing these assets after your passing.
A comprehensive estate plan should include:
✔️ Instructions for digital assets
✔️ Authorized access provisions
✔️ Secure documentation of important accounts
✔️ Guidance for preserving or closing accounts
Planning ahead can save your family significant stress, delay, and uncertainty.
At C&O Law Group LLC, we help clients create estate plans tailored to today’s digital world, including wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and digital asset planning.
We offer free consultations.
📍Serving Maryland, DC & Virginia
🌐 www.candolawgroup.com

05/18/2026

The $4,000 "Discount" That Could Cost a Family Everything

This week, a client brought us an estate plan they built using a popular online platform. On paper, the documents looked impeccable—clean formatting, crisp legal terms, and professional layouts.

The problem? The Will directly conflicted with the Trust. To make matters worse, the Trust was never actually funded.

It’s a classic cautionary tale. It is tempting to try and save $2,000 to $4,000 by using online software or AI tools. But if you don't fully understand the legal mechanics of how these documents interact, you risk completely undermining your own intentions.

Software can generate nice-looking paragraphs, but it cannot fund your trust, analyze your asset structure, or protect your family from conflicting terms. Leaving your estate planning to an algorithm often means leaving your relatives with a mountain of costly probate litigation—wiping out every dollar you thought you saved.

Don't let a computer handle your legacy. Hire a professional who looks at the whole picture.

04/24/2026

👉 Funding your trust means actually transferring your assets (like your home, bank accounts, and investments) into the name of the trust.
If you don’t do this, here’s what can happen in Maryland:
• Your assets may still have to go through probate (the very thing you were trying to avoid)
• Your plan may not work as intended—the trust only controls assets that are actually in it
• Your family could face delays, court involvement, and extra costs
• In some cases, assets could even go to the wrong people or be distributed differently than you planned
Think of it this way:
A trust without funding is just paperwork.
If you’ve created a trust (or are thinking about one), make sure it’s properly funded so it actually does what it’s supposed to do.
📩 Have questions about funding your trust? Reach out—I’m happy to help review your setup. 703-401-2078

04/20/2026

You can now find us, read about our services, and leave a review here:
👉 Here is the link https://www.google.com/search?q=C%26O+Law+Group&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAA_-NgU1I1qLBITrVItEg2NEk1MDZJSbG0MqgwM0k0MzIwMzQ0NjNOMzIzXcTK66zmr-CTWK7gXpRfWgAAOO2YSjkAAAA&hl=en&mat=CXIKjPu4ezsfElYBTVDHnpG8S_SRjsc4nZa9kxZpXkaXa3FOvHU02ZmQo9BC45FsHQB3W8AohwGv97-iBV7LSBeRs8vweBEJkuXxwxu-gDA1nJmVcQLwkweH-h9W-P_Tow&authuser=0
If we’ve worked together, we would truly appreciate you taking a moment to leave a review—your feedback helps others find trusted legal guidance.
Thank you for your continued support.

Law firm

02/25/2026

💙 Planning for a Loved One with Special Needs 💙
Caring for a child or family member with special needs means thinking about both today and tomorrow. A Special Needs Trust can help protect their future while preserving eligibility for essential benefits like Medicaid and SSI.
A properly drafted Special Needs Trust can provide for:
✨ Medical and dental expenses not covered by insurance
✨ Therapies and rehabilitation services
✨ Education and vocational training
✨ Transportation and adaptive equipment
✨ Personal care attendants
✨ Recreation, travel, and enrichment activities
Most importantly, it ensures your loved one is supported financially without jeopardizing the public benefits they rely on.
🛡️ Peace of mind.
📋 Proper planning.
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Protection for the future.
If you have a child or family member with special needs, planning ahead can make all the difference.
📞 Call 703-401-2078 to learn how a Special Needs Trust can be part of your estate plan.
C&O Law Group
108 S. Washington Street
Rockville, MD 20850

02/21/2026

🎓✨ Sending your child to college this fall?
Here’s something most parents don’t realize 👇
At 18, you no longer have automatic access to their medical information.
A HIPAA Authorization 🏥 and Power of Attorney 📄 can make sure you’re able to step in if they ever need you.
It’s one of the most important “back-to-school” items ✔ you’ll ever check off.
📞 Call us for details: 703-401-2078
Or tap the Call button on our page.
C&O Law Group
Informational only. Not legal advice
Advertisment reviewed by attorney Natalija Stamenkovic