Estate Planning and Administration

Give Yourself and Your Loved Ones Peace of Mind

No matter your life situation—everyone can benefit from an estate plan. Crafting an estate plan is a vital step in ensuring that your assets and belongings are distributed according to your wishes after you’re gone. You’ve worked hard, now making sure everything you’ve lived for goes to the people, causes, or organizations that matter most to you.

Singles
Especially if you’re single, you need an estate plan ensures that your affairs are managed by someone you trust if you become incapacitated. It also guarantees that your assets are passed on to the friends, family, or charities you care about, preventing confusion or disputes among potential heirs.

Married Couples
If you’re married, an estate plan provides a way to protect your spouse in the event of your death. It also simplifies the distribution of joint assets and outlines how everything should be handled, reducing the risk of legal complications or family disagreements.

For Parents
If you have minor children, an estate plan is essential for naming guardians and setting up trusts to manage their inheritance until they’re adults. This brings peace of mind, knowing that your children’s financial and emotional well-being is secure, no matter what the future holds.

Common Estate Planning Services

Estate planning covers a range of essential elements, and our team is here to guide you through each step of the process. We can help with all aspects of your estate planning needs, including:

Last Will and Testament
Your will is the cornerstone of your estate plan, ensuring that your assets are passed on according to your wishes. It covers everything from your home and vehicles to family heirlooms and personal belongings.

Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will
In the event of a serious illness, your family may face challenges in carrying out your wishes without guidance. Having a Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will in place ensures your family can focus on your care, rather than struggling with difficult decisions about your treatment.

Children’s Safeguard Plan
Deciding who will care for your minor children in the event of your passing is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. A clear plan can prevent confusion and unnecessary stress, giving you peace of mind knowing your children’s future is secure.

Financial Durable Power of Attorney
Designating someone to manage your financial affairs if you become incapacitated is crucial. A Financial Durable Power of Attorney helps avoid complications and costly mistakes by ensuring your affairs are managed properly during challenging times.

Revocable Living Trust
A trust not only provides added protection for your family but also helps avoid the public probate process. In addition to maintaining privacy, a trust can minimize taxes and safeguard your loved ones’ inheritances.

Asset Protection Planning
You’ve worked hard to build your wealth—now protect it. Asset Protection Planning helps shield your assets from taxes, lawsuits, and creditors, preserving your legacy for the people who matter most.

Long-Term Care Planning
Planning for future long-term care needs is essential to maintaining your financial health. A comprehensive estate plan should include strategies to manage the potential financial impact of long-term care, ensuring that you and your family are prepared for the future.

Common Mistakes

• Not appointing a guardian for your children or providing instructions on how the guardian should manage your assets to support your children’s care and well-being.
• Not designating power of Attorneys and healthcare representatives. If you become incapacitated, your family might have to go to court to gain conservatorship to make necessary decisions to help you.
• You haven’t kept your estate plan up to date, meaning the provisions may no longer reflect your current wishes when you pass.
• Not identifying funeral or burial preferences or other final plans.
• Digital assets (online banking, social media accounts, etc.) are not included in your estate plan.
• No provisions in place for charitable donations to the causes that matter to you.
• Your estate plan is too narrowly focused—assets you own when you create the plan may not be the same assets at the time of your passing.
• A trust you’ve established is improperly funded. This can make the process of titling assets, obtaining tax IDs, and dealing with personal property without titles particularly challenging.
• You haven’t accounted for potential tax liabilities, which can lead to unexpected burdens for your heirs.
• Your heirs may have trouble finding your estate plan, as it’s not properly organized or accessible.

• Only naming one beneficiary for your assets without designating a contingent beneficiary to inherit in case the primary beneficiary passes before you.

Estate Administration

Once your estate plan has been carefully crafted, you may wonder what happens when it’s time to put it into action. Our Trusts and Estates attorneys are here to assist executors and estate administrators in fulfilling their fiduciary responsibilities—no matter who originally created the estate plan.

Our services include preparing and filing all necessary documents and accountings to initiate, manage, and formally close estate and probate proceedings. We help identify and pay legitimate estate debts, gather and transfer assets to the designated beneficiaries, and address any issues related to death tax or fiduciary income tax. Our team also handles the filing of tax returns, as well as managing tax audits or examinations when needed.

Through postmortem tax planning, we work to reduce tax liabilities and address any liquidity concerns. Additionally, we represent clients in estate and trust administration disputes, including conflicts over the validity, interpretation, or execution of wills and trusts. Whether you are a fiduciary or beneficiary, we are here to guide you through any legal challenges that arise.

When it’s time to carry out an estate plan, your administration will be managed with care and integrity. Call Evan Schreier, Attorney at Law for expert assistance.