What is estate planning anyway?

Estate planning is the preparation for the distribution and management of a person’s estate at death through the use of wills, trusts, insurance policies, and other arrangements, especially to reduce estate-tax liability.

Estate planning is a branch of law that involves the arrangement of a person’s estate, taking into account the laws of wills, taxes, insurance, property, and trusts.

At Lease Four Documents In Your Estate Plan

So, if you need an Estate Plan, you need at least 4 documents:

1. A Last Will and Testament

2. A Revocable Living Trust

3. A Durable Power of Attorney

4. An Advanced Health Care Directive

These are the essential documents that you need in your estate plan for it to be effective. If you are missing just one of these documents, you could be headed for disaster.

Estate Planning Disaster Story

We have been involved in many lawsuits where a will was never signed. We had a case in 2017 where a gentleman passed away and no one could find his trust. His new wife said she didn’t have the trust. The adult children didn’t have a copy of the trust. As a result, a lawsuit happened.

Don’t let that happen to you. You can make the necessary changed and additions to your estate plan to avoid this. We can also keep a copy of your estate plan here in our office and we can notify all of your children and your family members that we have a copy of the estate plan. This way, if your will or trust is ever destroyed by fire, theft, flood or other means, we can provide you with a restored copy. It is simple when you would with our office on your estate planning.

Conclusions

While you’re living and healthy, you value being able to make your own decisions about your finances, property, health care, and raising your children. Should you die or become incapacitated, you hope others will handle these matters for you according to your wishes.

The only way to assure that will happen is through estate planning.

This process involves weighing various personal and financial decisions and creating legal arrangements to carry out those decisions. A licensed attorney will assist you to determine what you need a will, living trust, powers of attorney, or a living will.

Read Recent Article on 2014 Estate Tax Update (04/2014).

Additional Resources

What are the Basic Items in a Typical Estate Plan

Can Estate Planning Be Done Without An Attorney?

Estate Litigators in Utah

What is Estate Planning?

Estate Planning Concerns”

Estate Planning FAQs Videos

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