Weinstein Real Estate would like to congratulate Donna McClung on the recent sale of her home in Malakoff. We wish you the best in your next adventure!!
An estate planning lawyer can help individuals create a last will or establish a trust to protect inheritance assets in the event of their death. It is important to select a probate law attorney who listens to your needs and provides sound advice for developing strategies which benefit designated beneficiaries.
Recently, a colleague hired an KLG Estate Planning & Probate Attorneys to assist with her terminally-ill mother’s estate. Although her mother was not a wealthy woman, she owned a home, automobile and held financial portfolios and life insurance policies.
The estate attorney was referred through her mother’s credit union. Considerable family strife existed within the family and her mother wanted to disinherit one of her sons. The will attorney executed a simple will and provided strategies to prevent assets from passing through probate.
If you have decided to put your affairs in order and finally accept the fact that estate planning is something most of us would be better off having than not, the next thing you might be wondering about is how to choose a probate attorney. The first thing to remember is that your estate-planning attorney is a person with whom you will share a great deal of personal information.
The bottom line is whoever you choose, you should feel comfortable talking to him/her about your needs and concerns and if you don’t he/she is not the right attorney for you. Your attorney is your legal confidant and is duty bound to take your confidence with them beyond their own estate plan, which is shorthand for they must take your secrets to the grave with them. You can find more information about Estate Planning Attorney https://www.boydandboydpc.com/.
But it doesn’t matter what their duty is if you don’t feel comfortable telling them what you need in the first place. If you begin to feel uncomfortable talking to your would-be estate planning expert, you should begin to shop elsewhere.
The second thing to consider is that not all attorneys are created equal with respect to their ability in estate planning. A good first step in finding an attorney who will be a good fit for you is to ask people who you already know and trust. Ask the leader of your church, your doctor and your friends if they have had occasion to use an estate planner and ask what they think of that person.
If you get a recommendation, don’t stop there. Of course, these answers don’t tell you everything you need to know about your potential confidant, but having some information is better than flying blind into the world of attorneys. If the attorney who was recommended does not specialize in estate planning, then it may be that you don’t want that attorney to create a financial plan for you and your family.
Due to the nature of illness, the woman’s daughter did not have time to consult with multiple probate law firms. Instead, she was forced to work with an asset protection attorney who had no prior knowledge of her mother, family dynamics, or how she intended to distribute inheritance assets.
The credit union closed their estate planning division due to budget cuts. The daughter was not informed of this and only discovered she no longer had a lawyer for probate after her mother passed away. This created chaos for the daughter who was designated as the probate executor.
To make matters worse, the estate administrator resided in another state. She was forced to locate a new probate litigation attorney just days before returning home. During their meeting, the man expressed no interest in her mother’s estate and was unable to provide advice on how to protect her mother’s Will from being contested by the disinherited son.
Fortunately, she was well-versed in estate planning and had taken steps to obtain asset protection. Because the remainder of the estate was small, the Administrator was able to avoid probate and settle her mother’s estate within a few months.
This goes to show things can go dreadfully wrong when estate planning is put off until a person is terminally ill. Many unwanted issues can arise when trusts and estates are executed during the final weeks of a person’s life, we really suggest to visit a estate planning attorney before it is too late.
This is of importance when executing a last will and testament and distributing assets amongst dysfunctional families. When probate estate planning is conducted in the final stages of life, disinherited heirs can contest the will by claiming the decedent was not of sound mine or under the influence of another’s persuasion. When Wills are contested, estates can be suspended in probate for months or years and potentially bankrupt the estate.
Estate and trust planning should be initiated while you are in good health. Hiring an estate planning probate lawyer ensures your final wishes will be followed when you die. It also eliminates stress from the appointed probate personal representative.
If you are in the market to buy or sell some property give us a call. See what the power of TEAM work can do for you. 903-681-0482 (John) or 903-681-0477 (Bev).