At the most basic level, estate planning is about creating legal structures designed to make sure that your family's financial plan is not disrupted when things go wrong. Estate planning is about making sure that someone has the power to do what is necessary, and the instructions to do what is expected.
Estate planning often involves the creation of trusts, wills, powers of attorney. Occasionally, we will also create business entities, such as a corporation, an LLC or a Family Limited Partnership. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all estate plan, because every family is different.
We believe it is important that your estate plan captures your unique contribution to the world. It's not simply about avoiding probate and reducing taxes. Although those matters are important, a good estate plan also captures your legacy - in four areas:
- Financial;
- Philosophical;
- Social; and
- Spiritual.
Our goal is to help you create a legacy that captures your vision and your values in those four areas. In addition to creating a legacy, estate planning can also provide a number of legal benefits. You can:
- make sure that your personal decisions are honored;
- protect your assets from frivolous lawsuits;
- protect your children's inheritance from mismanagement, waste, lawsuits and divorce;
- transfer a family-owned business to the next generation;
- ensure that a special needs child continues to receive government benefits;
- and much more
The structure and the options in your estate plan will depend on your age, family situation, financial situation and, occasionally, your occupation or the types of assets you own.