Estate Planning is More than just Making a Will
Estate planning is not just planning for what will happen to you and your belongings when you’re gone. It is also to help protect yourself if something should happen to you, and to protect those you love. This can be a very sensitive area, but it is sometimes truly necessary to plan.
At Brown, Van Horn, we offer a wide array of services for those seeking to plan their estate. This includes for example, those who are planning their estate from scratch, to those who have had their circumstances change and want to update their plan, to those who want to assure their wishes are followed through with should they become incapacitated. We can also aid the executor of a will in probating that will through the court.
What can Estate Planning do for you?
Estate planning can include many different questions. Who will receive your real and personal property when you pass away? Who will make your medical and financial decisions should you become incapacitated? How will your debts be paid off when you pass away? Who will distribute your real and personal property when that time comes? How will those items be disbursed, whether it is all at once, or over time? Do you want your assets and debts disclosed publicly through a will, or would you like them done privately through a trust? Who will care for your children should they be minors if you become incapacitated or pass away? Do you have special needs children or parents who need special taking care of?
Estate planning can answer these questions the way you want them answered, and prevent future litigation between your creditors and your loved ones. It can also provide different tax shelters as well, thereby being able to provide even more for future generations.
What Happens when you Don’t Plan?
When estate planning is not done, or is not done properly, how your belongings and debts are handled is up to the state. In today’s day in age this can be very important. For example the state law does not grant step-children a single penny should one of their step-parents pass away. No matter how long the parent and child had a relationship, or how close they were. The step-child is deemed a “legal stranger” and unable to inherit. Estate planning is also especially important in Florida, as the homestead protection laws need to be followed.
It is also always important to make sure the planning you did was done right. If it was not, many issues can arise such as, old wills being probated instead of the new one, the state having control, or even legal disputes between loved ones and creditors. You cannot make a will essentially ‘bullet-proof,’ just by saying no one can contest it. Therefore, you never want to give a friend, a family member or a creditor any reason to dispute any part of your estate plan.
Estate Planning Should Be Personalized to fit You and Your Family
An array of other issues can be handled through proper estate planning. To determine what plan best fits you and your family’s needs a personal consultation with an attorney should be done.
Every person and every family is different. There are multiple different documents used to achieve the different goals you may have, we can help you plan, draft and execute these documents to achieve those goals, and protect yourself and those you love.