ESTATE PLANNING

Everyone needs an estate planning conference to review how your assets can pass onto your loved ones with the least amount of expense in the event of your death. Proper planning is often directed at avoiding the probate process and can save your estate thousands of dollars.

Probate is the Court process by which estate assets are identified, estate debts paid, and the remainder of the estate distributed to beneficiaries according to the will or by operation of law. Probating property can be expensive and time consuming due to court costs, attorney fees and waiting periods. Property can be transferred much more quickly and inexpensively upon death if the property being transferred is classified as a "non probate" asset. Probate avoidance is discussed in our estate planning conferences.

Our goal is to help you ensure that your assets are handled as you would want them to be, and to accomplish this as efficiently as possible.

The basic estate planning tools include the following:

Wills. These are documents that people use to dispose of their probate property after their passing. Wills are freely changeable and revocable during the testator's life. (A testator is a person who signs a will.).

Trusts. A trust refers to a legal arrangement whereby property is held and administered by one person or entity for the benefit of another or others. The person or entity is called the trustee. There are many different kinds of trusts that achieve different purposes. One purpose is to avoid the probate process and to keep information regarding one's assets from becoming public. Some trusts can avoid taxes when the trustor (maker of the trust) passes on, while others can be structured so that funds of the trust are used only for specific purposes, i.e. the education or welfare of a child. Whether a trust is an appropriate estate planning tool for you depends on an in depth review of your particular circumstances.

Powers of Attorney (POAs). This is an instrument that authorizes another person to act as one's agent or attorney in fact. The agent's power may be either general or special, meaning that it may be broad and apply for all purposes or be limited to achieve a specific purpose.

A general, durable Power of Attorney will avoid the need for guardianship of a person who, after execution of the document, later becomes incompetent.

A Health Care Power of Attorney designates a person or persons (in order of priority) to make health care decisions, in the event that a person becomes unable to do so by reason of physical or mental condition.

Living Wills. A living will, also known as a medical directive, sets forth one's direction regarding life support systems or other artificial means for prolonging life, in the event of a permanently unconscious or terminal condition.

Guardianships. While there are many types of guardianships, this generally refers to an arrangement where one person (the guardian) agrees to, and is charged with, the care and control of another person (the ward) and /or another person's property; this is done when the ward is in need of guardianship due to his physical or mental condition.

Contact our office to learn how to develop a comprehensive and cost effective estate plan.