6 Estate Planning Documents and How They Help You (part 1 of 3)

When creating your estate plan, you will need to consider many different estate planning documents.  This will allow you to have a full estate plan in place so that your needs are met.  We often receive many questions about the use of various documents.  So, we outlined important information regarding some popular documents.  If you have any questions about the following information, or if you’d like to discuss your personal estate planning needs, call our estate planning law office for a confidential consultation.

Will

One of the basic estate planning documents that most people create is a will.  A will allows you to achieve the following:

• Decide how your assets will be distributed to the beneficiaries of your choosing
• Appoint a guardian for the care of your minor children
• Appoint an executor to handle your estate’s affairs

If you’d like to be in control of the above decisions, you will want to create a will.  This will allow your wishes to be followed.  Without a will, your state’s laws will decide how your assets will be distributed, and your guardian and executor choices will be decided in court.

Revocable living trust

This estate planning tool allows you to place assets in the name of your trust.  You have full control over your assets throughout your lifetime.  You can even make changes to your trust, at any time.  A revocable living trust allows you to do the following:

• Decide how and when your trust’s assets will be distributed to the beneficiaries of your choice
• Avoid the probate process
• Control your trust during your lifetime
• Plan for how your assets will be managed during incapacity
• Plan how your trust’s affairs will be handled after your death

A revocable living trust is a great tool to consider.  Along with a will, you can accomplish many of your estate planning goals.

Take a look at our next blog post (part 2 of 3) to learn more about important documents and tools.

If you have any questions about the use of any of these estate planning documents, call our estate planning law office for a confidential consultation.

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Michael Robinson, Estate Planning Attorney

Clients notice Michael Robinson’s unique approach to his estate planning practice the minute they walk through his office doors.

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