Estate & Wills

In these digital days, more than ever before, there are strict financial institutional privacy regulations and physician privacy and confidentiality laws in place to protect a person and their belongings.  While on one hand, we want the protections these laws and regulations provide, on the other hand, it makes it nearly impossible to step in for a loved one who needs assistance to manage their financial and medical affairs without the right legal documentation.

You’ve probably heard you need a trust to keep your family out of court and maybe out of conflict in the event of your death or incapacity.  And, if you own any assets in your name at the time of your incapacity or death, without the right legal documents, your family must go to court for permission to access them. While you may under this, you still need clarification about whether you need a revocable or irrevocable trust. Since more and more, people are coming our way asking for an irrevocable trust, this article is designed to help you learn the difference between these types of trusts so you can be prepared to discuss your options. 

As the need for affordable legal services becomes more important in today’s world, group legal insurance offered through workplace benefits is becoming more common. These group insurance plans provide free legal assistance from law firms that have contracted with the insurance company to provide legal work.

When considering estate planning, most people automatically think about taking legal steps to ensure the right people inherit what they have when they pass away. And these people aren’t wrong. Putting strategies in place to protect and pass on what you own is a fundamental part of the planning equation. However, providing for the proper distribution of your assets upon your death is just one part of the process. And it’s not even the most critical part.

If you have a current estate plan, I’ll bet you plan to leave your assets to your children outright and unprotected by age 35, or maybe a little later. Go take a look at your estate plan, and see what it does right now. And, if you don’t have an estate plan, and you have children or other people you care about, contact us today and let’s get that handled for you.  

You’ve probably heard you need a trust to keep your family out of court and maybe out of conflict in the event of your death or incapacity. And, if you haven’t, you are hearing it now. If you own any “probatable” assets in your name at the time of your incapacity or death, your family must go to court for permission to access them. If you aren’t sure if your assets are “probatable” contact us to discuss.