Many people think of estate planning as simply a way to distribute assets after death. While this is, of course, part of it, a properly designed and executed estate plan can help you accomplish much more, including:

• Preserve the lifestyle to which you and your family have become accustomed
• Maintain complete control over your assets and affairs
• Remain independent for as long as possible
• Preserve your dignity should you become incapacitated
• Protect your estate against probate, litigation and paying too much in taxes
• Minimize disputes and hard-feelings among beneficiaries and preserve family relationships
• Protect your beneficiaries’ inheritance against divorce, remarriage, lawsuits, and bankruptcy
• Help ensure your lasting legacy
• Make the process of distributing your assets as efficient and stress-free as possible for your loved ones

Our primary goal is to help you find peace of mind and satisfaction that your family will be taken care of and your assets will be protected.  The estate planning tools we can put to work on your behalf include:

Trusts.  We advise you on and prepare the legal instruments that allow you to plan for how to take care of your family financially while you are still alive and after your death.

Wills.  We prepare the legal document allowing you to designate the executor of your estate, designate the guardians of your children, direct the disposition of your property, and create other instructions for the administration of your estate, saving your family the pain, confusion, and turmoil that is created when one dies without a will.

Powers of Attorney.  We prepare and create the legal instruments allowing a spouse or trusted agent to act in our clients’ stead.

Advance Medical Directives.  We prepare and create the legal instruments indicating our clients’ desires as to continuing medical care when they are in a non-resuscitative state.

Every family is different. To learn how we can address your concerns and help you achieve your goals, contact us.  We offer a free 15-minute phone consultation to explain the above documents in more detail.  We also offer a one-hour office meeting preliminary analysis of your estate plan and future estate planning needs, for which we charge $175 (creditable toward estate planning work arising out of this meeting).