At Family Wills & Trusts, PLC, estate planning is a personalized process because there's much more to getting your estate plan done than deciding who should receive your property when you pass away. This article is about revealing why your estate planning attorney should understand there's much more to your planning than merely "who gets what."
Deciding who will receive your property is something you can do on your own (and you definitely need to let your estate planner know who should inherit your property), but if you want your family to benefit from your passing rather than be burdened by potentially years (yes years) of confusion and conflict over your estate administration, you need your estate planner to take a look at what you have going on in your life right now, in order to assess what kind of planning makes sense.
If your estate planner is an attorney with a practice that regularly sets up family trusts (that do not have to be complex), he or she should be able to confidentially discuss and examine your needs. Your marital history / status, your age, your health, age of your children, their health, their ability to manage responsibility, your relationship with your children, and of course the type of assets you own - are all variables that determine what an appropriate plan should look like in order to improve communication, avoid conflict and maximize value to take care of you and your loved ones.
If you die or become incapacitated with no plan at all, or with even with a typical "will-and-powers-of-attorney" type of plan in place, you should know that your agent's legal authority to manage your affairs under the authority of a power-of-attorney, will end as soon as you die, and that a public probate will still be required for further management and distribution of your assets in excess of $23,000 in the State of Michigan.
If you have less than this threshold amount, then a simple-will and power of attorney may be all that you need. But if you are like most people who have more than $23,000 in assets (and you care about not leaving your family with a mess), do NOT be fooled by rumors you've heard that a "simple will" and power-of-attorney, is all that you need to take care of your family. People with no planning or simple-will based plans may as well have no planning in place at all, because their family will still end up in probate after the surviving-spouse in the relationship passes. Smart couples who meet with an estate planner well before any kind of medical crisis occurs, are able to plan with a clear mind, happiness in the air, and forward-thinking thoughts about how their family will benefit from the arrangements they've made, instead of having to plan while under the duress of a terminal diagnosis or other crisis.
* If you have minor children, or if you (or your spouse) have a family history of Alzheimer's or other dementing disease, there is a more urgent need for you to put planning in place due to determinations of "care" for yourself and/or any young children. If you haven't decided who should provide care for you, or for your children, a probate court judge who doesn't even know your family will choose for you, at your expense, or the expense of your estate.
If you are not familiar with "probate," it refers to a process (and the type of court) that handles matters related to the transfer and control of a person's assets and responsibilities at their death (or incapacity) when they have no plan in place, or when they have the typical lawyer (who doesn't do much estate planning) help them with a simple-will type of plan (with or without powers of attorney).
If you have dependents under your care (minor children or guardianship of an adult), the probate court will also step in to decide any unresolved matters like who should take care of them during your incapacity and have access to your financial accounts (for your benefit and for theirs). Proper estate planning will greatly reduce the time spent in probate court (if it is necessary at all), while on the other hand, probate supervised administration, necessitated by no plan or a will-based plan could last multiple years and be much more expensive than having paid for a planning in advance.
Common Misconception of What a WILL does
When you have a simple will (even with powers of attorney), it does not mean that your family will avoid probate. It actually guarantees that your family will have to go through probate. Upon your death, the probate court will examine the will that you have created for validity and (hopefully) accept it as your will. Then, the court will ask your personal representative (executor), to publish notice of your death in newspapers for the purpose of notifying your creditors and natural heirs (perhaps not named in your will) so they may make a claim on your estate. If unanticipated creditors or heirs make claims on your estate, the probate process will take more time and accrue more expense to the detriment of your heirs.
It's not about the Money
Okay maybe it is largely about your money and other assets, but when most people realize that working with an estate planner is as much about saving the LOVE in their family as it is about passing an inheritance to the next generation, your family will love and appreciate you for blessing them with a way to side-step the stress, confusion, and conflict that often occurs during probate. Contact our office below or request information to learn more about what a plan that will work for your family might look like.
