Estate Planning is the process of organizing your personal and financial affairs to be prepared in the event of disability and to arrange for the orderly transmittal of your property to your intended beneficiaries. The key is to fashion a plan specifically designed to your needs and desires. Our trust & estate lawyers work with our clients, taking the time necessary to ascertain those needs and desires, and to explore various ways to implement a tailor-made estate plan.
Estate planning can be complex for numerous reasons: there may be complexity due to the state and/or federal tax laws; there may be a need to protect resources for minor children and to construct a mechanism for those children to increasingly step into the responsibility of handling their inheritance as they reach maturity; there may be a desire to protect assets from an heir’s potential creditors; there may be concern for caring for a special needs child; concerns may arise due to a second marriage and the need to balance providing for one’s spouse with caring for children from an earlier marriage. Proper estate planning involves understanding a client’s unique circumstances and constructing a plan that will cover a client’s specific concerns.
Some of the documents your estate planning attorney can prepare are: simple and complex wills, revocable trusts, life insurance trusts, special needs trusts, family partnerships, charitable remainder trusts, powers of attorney, heath care directives, and many other documents.
