Estate Planning for Lunch, anyone?

 

Do Your Parents Have an Estate Plan?

 

If you are part of the sandwich generation—caring for both your children and your parents at the same
time—it is crucial that you know whether or not your parents have an existing estate plan. While the final decisions within their estate plan rest with them, you can help them take this sometimes uncomfortable step to ensure everything is in place if it's needed. For all of us, creating a comprehensive estate plan is an absolute necessity, regardless of when it is done.

In some families the thought of speaking with your parents about important and often sensitive topics like their finances and estate planning will kill your appetite and can make you want to run as fast as you can in the opposite direction. But sometimes we have to parent ourselves into having this conversation since it is the key to ensuring that your parents' wishes are carried out after their death or if they ever become incapacitated.

 

Estate Planning for Your Parents

Initiating conversations about your parents’ future, especially concerning their finances, medical care, and memorial wishes, can be challenging, but it is undeniably one of the most important discussions you can have with them. Addressing these topics sooner rather than later benefits everyone involved and ensures greater peace of mind and preparedness for the future. This conversation can cover plans for when one or both parents pass away as well as scenarios where they become incapacitated and unable to manage their own affairs. 

The following key areas are important to discuss with your parents:

 

●     A team effort. Encourage your parents to compile a list of their advisors, starting with legal and financial professionals, including their contact information. This list should also include the contact information for your parents’ doctors so that whoever they nominate as their health care agent can reach them if necessary. Remember that even if they prefer not to share the list immediately, they can create it and let you know where to find the information if the need arises.

●     Last will and testament or a trust. If you discover that your parents do not currently have a last will and testament (also known as a will) or revocable living trust (also known as a trust), it is probable that they do not have other essential estate planning tools, since they are often created as part of a comprehensive estate plan. If they do have a will in place, confirm when it was created, who the personal representative or executor is, and where the original wills are stored. Similarly, if you discover that they have a trust, you will want to confirm who the trustee is, whether or not they have funded property and financial accounts into their trust, and where the original trust documents are stored. Remember that you do not need to read their will or trust , but knowing where to find the original documents is important to ensuring that their wishes are carried out when the time comes.

●     Medical directives. While discussing your parents’ estate plan, confirm whether they have created a living will and a medical power of attorney (also known as an advance health care directive). These important tools allow someone to make medical decisions on their behalf if they are unable to make or communicate their own medical decisions. If you discover that they have these tools in place, encourage them to have a conversation with their chosen agent under their medical power of attorney to ensure that the decision-maker understands your parents’ feelings and wishes about both their medical care preferences as well as their end-of-life care, such as how their medical affairs should be handled should they become incapacitated and whether or not they want to be on life support.

●     Insurance policies. It is important for you or your parents’ trusted decision-makers to know what insurance policies they have and where documentation is located, especially if one or both parents become incapacitated. This includes health insurance (private or Medicare), life insurance, homeowner’s insurance, auto insurance, disability insurance, and long-term care policies.

●     Financial, Investment, and Retirement Accounts. Normally as part of an estate plan a list of your assets will be prepared, but if you don't have a plan in place yet, you can take care of this independently. Creating a comprehensive list of their checking, savings, brokerage, mutual fund, pension, and retirement accounts that includes where each account is held, account numbers, and the names of any key contacts at the institution. Just as important, your parents should have a financial power of attorney in place so that a trusted individual can step in and manage these accounts if your parents are traveling, ill, injured, or otherwise unable to manage their affairs. An experienced estate planning attorney can draft this document, but it is also wise to ask whether the financial institutions involved require their own power of attorney forms, since these are often more readily accepted. Having a valid power of attorney ensures that someone can access and manage your parents’ accounts, whether checking, investment, or retirement, so that day-to-day expenses are covered and long-term financial needs are met during incapacity and beyond.

Why Estate Planning Matters

Communication is key - whether it is your parents talking to an attorney or to each of their beneficiaries, making sure everyone is on the same page can prevent a lot of unnecessary pain. Failing to put together an estate plan often leads to chaos, excessive costs and taxes, unnecessary court involvement, inadequate incapacity planning, potential hurt feelings, delays in distributing inheritances, and even unexpected outcomes after death.

Fear and discomfort can keep you from having this important estate planning conversation with your parents. As an estate planning attorney, I can provide your parents with guidance and advice on what options are available to them so that their wishes are followed when their time comes.

 

Why Do I Want to Work with an Estate Planning Attorney?

Did you know that in some circles an attorney is referred to as a "counselor at law"? A person who can listen to what you say, and what you don't say, and help you determine what you need, and how to get you where you want to go within a specific legal framework.  

This perspective, and this ability, comes strongly into focus when preparing an estate plan. Having the opportunity to talk through all of your "what if...?", to have them raised for you and explored with you is an invaluable opportunity. This opportunity is not presented with an online form where we answer preset questions, or if we talk to someone who has their own experiences with estate planning, even with tangential professional experience such as financial planning or paralegal work. 

Most of us do not have experience with an "estate plan" when we decide that we want to put something together for when we pass away.  Maybe we knew someone with a trust, maybe our parents or grandparents have one, but we don't really know what exactly an estate plan is. We see the scene in the movie of the attorney reading the will and wonder if that is what we need to do. We talk to our friends and hear that what we really want is "a trust". Even still, when we hear the words "estate plan" we think of the rich and famous - or at least someone that we...aren't. 

Once we learn what an estate plan actually is (you can take a look at this blog post I wrote on that question here) we start wondering how we can go about putting something together that is actually appropriate for our own lives. 

I think the question of whether someone needs to work with an attorney to prepare their estate plan might be one of the most common questions that people think about and ask themselves once they have realized that they need an estate plan. There are lots of different options out there, and it can feel hard to know what is right for each of us. Sometimes we might think that preparing our estate plan is just a fill in the blank process where we just need to enter our names onto the right forms, or we might think that we need to find someone who can fill in our names to these forms for us. Or maybe we think that working with a legal diy service is the right way to go. 

The thing to remember is that we don't know what we don't know, and often times we don't even know that we don't know. This is true for estate planning as much as any other area.

Estate planning is an area where we can have lots of questions: 

• Who will help me? 
• Who will get my things?
• How do I make sure that the right person gets what they are supposed to?
• What happens if I am unable to handle things myself?

These are some of the easier questions. The harder ones come next - and when you work with an estate planning attorney after we answer the easy questions we can move on to asking and answering the hard questions. Preparing a comprehensive estate plan that will contain the answers to the questions that suddenly arise when our first answers no longer work, by working with an attorney who is experienced in preparing documents, interpreting the law, and will be able to help ask and help you to answer the questions that apply to your family and your own special set of life circumstances.

An experienced estate planning attorney will help you answer those questions, and they can even help you remember to ask the questions in the first place. Reach out to the Law Office of Michelle D. Smith today to learn more and get started.

Disclaimer: Michelle D. Smith is a California Licensed attorney, SBN 233515.  The materials contained on this page is for general informational purposes, it should not be considered formal legal advice and does not create a formal lawyer/client relationship.

Do I Need a Power of Attorney if I am Married?

In California, being married does not automatically grant a spouse power of attorney over the other. Power of attorney is a legal document that allows one person (the "agent" or "attorney-in-fact") to act on behalf of another (the "principal") in various legal and financial matters.

If you want your spouse to have power of attorney, you would need to specifically designate them as your agent through a power of attorney document. This document should outline the specific powers you are granting to your spouse, as well as any limitations or conditions.

It's important to note that there are different types of powers of attorney, including:

1. **General Power of Attorney**: This grants broad powers to the agent and allows them to handle a wide range of financial and legal matters on your behalf.

2. **Limited (or Special) Power of Attorney**: This grants specific, limited powers to the agent for a particular purpose or within a specific time frame.

3. **Durable Power of Attorney**: This remains in effect even if the principal becomes incapacitated or unable to make decisions.

4. **Springing Power of Attorney**: This "springs" into effect only under specific circumstances outlined in the document, such as when the principal becomes incapacitated.

Regardless of your marital status, it's crucial to carefully consider who you appoint as your power of attorney, ensuring that they are trustworthy, responsible, and capable of making decisions in your best interest. 

If you have questions about whether a durable power of attorney is something you need, please reach out and schedule a consultation, I can help you decide what type of power of attorney is right for you.  

Understanding the Different Types of Powers of Attorney

Different Types of Powers of Attorney

There are different types of powers of attorney. They are similar, yet different enough, that it is important to understand the difference.

These powers can be used in different situations - for the management of health care decisions, for the management of financial decisions, or for the management of real property. Though they allow you to take different actions, they share some common characteristics. The powers granted by these documents are often very broad, allowing the person the ability to make decisions on your behalf as if they were you.

What are General Powers of Attorney?

A General Power of Attorney is a formal document that allows you to appoint someone to act on your behalf, no matter the circumstances. It gives this person the power to handle your finances, property, and business affairs. If it is not durable it will not be effective if you become incapacitated.

What are Durable Powers of Attorney?

A durable power of attorney allows an individual to give someone else the authority to make personal decisions for them. It is called a "durable" power of attorney because it continues to function even if you have become incapacitated. This is in contrast to a non-durable general durable power of attorney which stops being effective if you are incapacitated.

What are Springing Powers of Attorney?

A power of attorney (for any type of action or decision) is said to be a "springing" power of attorney if it is the type of power of attorney that grants the person the ability to act on your behalf only if you become incapacitated. The person that is identified in the power of attorney cannot make any decision on your behalf unless you are unable to make those decisions for yourself. 

Springing Powers of Attorney are also known as "springing" powers because they “spring” into effect (become operational) when a triggering event occurs, such as a mental disability diagnosis. In this case, the document identifies what the triggering event will be before the person can make decisions for you.

What Does an Immediately Effective Power of Attorney do Differently? 

If a Power of Attorney is said to be "immediately effective" that means that the person being granted the power can take actions under that document without you being incapacitated, or without you meeting any pre-condition. Many Powers of Attorney have the ability to start as a springing power but then be activated with the signing of an authorization, allowing the protective nature of the springing power to be combined with the ability to plan for its use with a power that is immediately effective.

Who Can Benefit From a Durable Power of Attorney?

People often think that a power of attorney is only beneficial for the elderly -  their parents or grandparents, for example. In fact powers of attorney are beneficial for most of us. We never know when something may change and we may need the help of a trusted companion. Since these documents can only be prepared when we don't need them, it is something to take care of early. Without a power of attorney in place the only option left for our loved ones is to utilize the power of the courts to grant the ability to make decisions on our behalf. This is true for anyone - our children once they are 18, our partners, our parents. 

I can help you understand the different types of powers of attorney and help you to be prepared for the unexpected situations in life.  

What is Estate Planning?

What is Estate Planning?

Estate planning is the process of making decisions about
what happens to your property, including real estate, personal possessions and money, after you die. It is the process of thinking things through and sharing your decisions with the people who matter to you.

Estate planning helps you determine who will manage your assets, provide financial support for your dependents and how they (and you!) will be cared for. It also explains how a person's final wishes are followed in the event of incapacity and death.

The best estate planning is done after careful consideration, thinking through who matters to you, what you have, and how things are best handled. You can reach out for a complimentary consultation with me and we can explore how estate planning can help you meet your goals for your self and those you care about.

Can I Inherit Mom's Mortgage When She Dies?

In many families our home is our most valuable possession. We invest a lot in order to have our homes - time, money, work, love, and often tears. It is the place where we gather with those we love. We have dreams of the future, share memories of the past, and plan for tomorrow. as they say "Home is where the heart is."

When we think about losing a loved one we can also be faced with losing the place that holds those memories - the family home. 

 The family politics surrounding the family home can be interesting. Just like with the stuff that is inside of it some might not want it for themselves, but hate the idea of seeing it gone to strangers. Sometimes someone does not want the home to be sold, they do not want it themselves, and they do not want a sibling to have the home either. As with all things related to losing a family member, the internal politics can be... complicated.

Though figuring out the answers related to the family politics is not a legal analysis, the question of how to keep the family home can be made easier knowing that the mortgage company cannot call the loan due when it transfers to a beneficiary through an estate plan, and it also cannot apply the mortgage company's ability to pay rule.

Most mortgages contain an acceleration clause that will allow a mortgage company to call a note due "if all or any part of the property, or an interest therein, securing the real property loan is sold or transferred without the lender's prior written consent." But Federal law prohibits a lender from implementing an acceleration clause where the property is transferred to a relative upon the death of the borrower. This provision allows an heir to retain a property after inheritance without worrying that the mortgage holder will call the note due when it transfers into their name.

So now that you have discovered that you can in fact keep the mortgage on the family home without worrying that the lander is gong to call the note due when you inherit it, do you need to worry about being able to qualify for the mortgage? The answer to this related question is also a solid no. As long as you can continue to pay the mortgage the mortgage holder cannot make you reapply for a loan on the property. You can instead start paying on the same terms as were available to the person you inherited the property from, and can even apply for a modification of those loan terms.

Losing someone you love is a difficult enough time to also be worried about being able to qualify for an obtain a mortgage in order to keep the family home. Luckily we are protected from these difficult challenges and can instead focus on the more pressing concerns of learning to live in a whole new world without someone we love. 

Do not allow the fear of how your things will be taken care of when you are not able to take care of them keep you from putting your plan in place. Reach out today and start planning for what will happen to the family home so those you love will not have to do so  once you are gone.

The Options are Limitless

"I chose not to have children, so I do not need an estate plan." 

This statement is generally true, but it is generally true for all of us, not just those of us who choose not to have children. The state has designed an estate plan that any of us can follow if we do not put one together ourselves.
The problem is that the estate plan designed by the state is probably not going to be the one we would choose for ourselves. Everything we worked for in life will end up going to the niece we never knew, or the brother who never came to visit. Or it could all just end up going to the state. The process is called probate, and how probate works is a discussion for another day.

While an estate plan is not necessary for anyone, it is certainly something that is desirable for all of us. We work hard in our lives, when we are no longer here we have the ability to share with the things that matter to us. This is especially true if we have anything that we care about in life.
We have the option of sharing our assets any way we choose.

• Have pets? Make sure they are taken care of.
• Love animals? Donate to your favorite animal welfare organization.
• Love books? Set up a scholarship fund for writers.

Making the choice to not have children does not mean that you do not want a say in how your things are treated when you are gone. For some, this act of not having children was a conscious choice and we can make another conscious choice to distribute our accomplishments in the way that we chose to live our lives - with deliberation. We can choose to give to the things we care about.

The options are as limitless as your imaginations.

A Time to Assess

Now that the holidays are behind us, and the excitement, anticipation, and stress of the season are no longer bearing down on us and clouding our minds, we can turn to reflect on our experiences at the holidays. Though it may seem strange, this is a great time to assess whether those we love are in need of greater assistance than we realized.

There are many people who we only see once or twice a year, and the holidays are often that time. This makes the perfect time to reflect on our experiences and see how we feel about how our loved ones are doing. It is hard to think about our parents and grandparents needing help, but it is even harder to think about them being alone and not having their needs met.


The fun and excitement of the holidays is a great time to spend with the ones we love. It also can be a time where our loved ones are able to mask and hide how life really is for those who are getting older. With the hustle and bustle of family gatherings and all the accompanying work, being tired and forgetful might be normal, but at the same time it might not. Having nothing in the house to eat except what is needed for the family feast might be a sign that someone we love is struggling, either to go shopping or financially to afford groceries.

After the holidays is a great time to check back in with those ones we love and talk to them about how life is. With all the joy of having family close to them behind them it is not to surprising to think that depression can follow, especially for those living alone or far from close family. It is also a great time to find out who our loved ones friends are and to make sure we have their contact information and they in turn have ours as well.

In the excitement of the season it can be easy to overlook signs that someone we love needs help, but with a little reflection we can sometimes spot something early enough to help those we love be able to make decisions for themselves about changes that need to be made. We can help them see that they need someone to come in once a week to help with the house, or that they need someone to bring them their groceries.

This can be a good time to talk to our loved ones and make sure they have thought through how they want things handled if they cannot do so themselves and to encourage them to find an estate planning attorney they like and trust to help them decide on and to record how they want things handled for their own lives, allowing them to make their own decisions while they can, saving themselves and their loved ones the pain and strife of having to make legal decisions on their behalf.

If you need help learning what your options are and making sure that they are available for your loved ones to follow, or if someone you know could use some help, reach out to me. I can help you or those you care about, decide how you want things to be handled and put a plan together that reflects your choices.

Disclaimer: The materials contained on this page is for general informational purposes, it should not be considered formal legal advice and does not create a formal lawyer/client relationship

Magic of the Season

For me, living in a home with small children renews the magic of the holiday season exponentially. They look around and see the magic and the surprise and their energy is infectious.Their wonder and joy at the lights and magic in the air reminds us of the beauty of life, that we each have just this one time, this one chance, to live and share and give and love.

The days are now growing longer, and the nights shorter. The energy that fills my life has shown bright on these long, dark nights with the sounds of laughter and running, the joy of living.

I am reminded that the holidays are a time to give thanks, to show my love and appreciation for those I am fortunate to have in my life. They are a time to celebrate this gift of life and to reflect on what we have accomplished and what we will accomplish in the year and years ahead. To set the framework now to ensure the best for the year ahead, to learn from the year that is falling behind, and to find joy in the life that we live.

The relationships I have forged remind me everyday that what we each truly want is to be loved and to share our love with those around us. It is a wonderful time to reflect and reinforce what we want our lives to mean and what we want our lives to be remembered for once we are gone. I meet many different people in my life, and those I am fortunate to have the chance to work with reinforce for me this idea that we want to share our lives and share our love with all those we are connected to for as long as we can.

If you reflect on your year and look ahead with a desire to put a framework in place to share with those you love reach out to me and we can design an estate plan that accomplishes just what you want. Learn more at my website or on my facebook page.

Disclaimer: The materials contained on this page is for general informational purposes, it should not be considered formal legal advice and does not create a formal lawyer/client relationship.

Here Comes the Rain!

It seems late to me, the very end of November, to be seeing the first rains of the season. It has been a beautiful summer, and a summer-like fall, but now the forecast calls for a change in weather
conditions and rain is on the horizon. Here in the mountains close to California's Central Coast, where beautiful weather is the norm, we prepare for a real storm with rain coming to wash away the grime of a year, and nurture the beauty we so adore.

Our house sits in the forest, and the change in weather means preparations need to occur. The summer umbrella needs to be folded and brought in, and the chairs we enjoyed the sunshine in need to be covered. My eldest is on vacation, so we have raked leaves and cleared the way for the rain to wash through the yard together with almost a festive sense of anticipation, enjoying that universal childhood experience of jumping and diving in the pile we created. Most get cleared, but some remain to provide habitat for the creatures in winter.

The trees mean not just leaves in the yard, however, but also leaves on the roof and in gutters. Downspouts need to be cleared and our drainage system needs to be inspected. I'm not the type who waits around for someone else to handle the chores that need doing, so I bring out the ladder and climb up to clear the leaves and detritus of a year from the gutters. Cleaning gutters can be tedious, and my mind turns to how many people get hurt doing simple home maintenance tasks such as this. Instead of moving the ladder, you climb one rung too high and lose your balance. Instead of climbing down and then up again, you reach and stretch to just finish the job, pushing the ladder out from under yourself. You step off one step too soon and fall backwards. Though the six foot ladder might not look so tall, the drop can cause more harm than you realize.

It seems silly that such a yearly chore can make you realize that you need to have your legal documents in place. And again we feel like those accidents are something that "won't happen to me". The reality is though, that it is not unheard of for people to fall from ladders at home, requiring medical treatment, trips to the emergency rooms, and even sometimes worse.

It's never a bad time, and never a better time than now, to make sure you have papers in place to protect yourself and your loved ones. If you get hurt cleaning your gutters who will be able to take care of your responsibilities? If you get hurt and are hospitalized, who will make your medical decisions for you? Making sure that you have all of your appropriate powers of attorney in place and current can save you and the ones you loved from unnecessary headache and heartache.

Now that the gutters are cleaned, and the holiday season is upon us, it is time for the decorating, with all of its associated potential hazards, to truly begin! Reach out and give me a call so I can help ensure that you are prepared for the unanticipated accidents of the season.

Self Care... With a Lawyer?

A day at the spa, relaxing on the beach, taking a long fishing trip, going for a hike in a beautiful place. These are all examples of activities one can take that fall into the category of self care. Seeing an attorney does not appear anywhere on the list. Seeing an attorney is undoubtedly not the first thing when you think of self care, but if we take a moment to look deeper we can see that it is.

In this constantly changing and busy world, taking care of ourselves and our loved ones seems to be more difficult than ever. It seems that the American culture is one of busy-ness - long to do lists, always connected and available to answer the phone or an email wherever and whenever they pop up. This constant connectedness can interfere with our ability to step back and gain perspective about the why of it all - why do we work? why do we care? what's the purpose? Self care can help bring us back so we can really answer those questions again.

If we each take a moment and think about why we do what we do we can see our underlying motivation. Sure, having a home, food, electricity are all wonderful in and of themselves, but if you are a parent you know you are also doing these things to provide a good life for your children. You need a vacation, so you go to Disneyland - not because you are a lifelong Mickey Mouse fan, but because you want your children to have the experience of going. If you are a grandparent you know you are also working to share life experiences with your children and grandchildren. And for those who are pet parents we know we are also looking for ways to enrich the lives of our pets with comfort, treats and travel. Self care can mean learning to love living life again, which sharing those experiences shows us.

The desire to continue being able to help those we love can be one of our fears with growing older and with death. We know we still want to contribute and help even when we are gone can be a source of underlying stress in our lives. For parents of young children the thought of someone else raising them, and possibly not someone we would have chosen, can be unfathomable. For our pets, not knowing whether they will be cared for or if they will be turned over to the animal shelter with an uncertain future.  That's where seeing an attorney becomes self care.

When we put our wishes and desires down on paper and let everyone know what we want for the things that matter most to us we have a huge burden lifted from our shoulders. We can enjoy more of life, and do more living, knowing that if something happens to us those we love will be cared for long after we can no longer do so ourselves. Once we see what we are capable of, we can see clearly that a visit to an attorney is an important form of self-care afterall.

Changing Seasons

The seasons are changing and fall is in full swing. The air is crisp in the mornings, but warms come afternoon- inviting us outside to enjoy just a little more sunshine. October is a special month. It is the start of the holiday season with wonderful celebrations of Halloween and Dias de los Muertos. Costumes, and pumpkin carving, candy and marigolds. As the mother of two young children these holidays have a special place in my heart.

Halloween is a special time for young children especially. It allows them to connect with the world of possibility and live their imaginations. They get to celebrate their ideas of what could be - what could be real in the world and what could be possible for them. They can take themselves wherever their fancy takes them, growing their imaginations while opening possibilities for their future. A healthy imagination is the heart of creativity and can change the ideas of possibility to probability.

I was fortunate to celebrate Dias de los Muertos with friends this year. Taking time to honor my ancestors, and theirs, and reflect up on those who went before me, the lives they lived so that I could live this life and so that my children could live theirs. It is interesting to take a moment to contemplate where we come from in such a literal sense. It can help to remind us that we are not alone - that our way was paved by the love and struggles of the lives of many who continue to hold us up and move us forward.

These days tie what was tightly to what may be. Being back to back like they are is like a condensed version of life itself and gives us a chance to reflect on how we want what was to carry forward to what will be. It reminds us that the love and work of our ancestors helped carry us to where we are today and that we have an opportunity to take what was given to us and decide how we want it carried forward into the future. We can choose how we want to fuel the imaginations of our children by sharing what we have learned as we have journeyed through life.

An estate plan is not just a legal document that conveys our property. Preparing an estate plan also gives us an opportunity to share our dreams and the fruit of our imaginations with those we love. We can use it as a trigger to prepare a document that doesn't just transfer property, but can also include our thoughts on life and leave a message to the ones we love. LIke a time capsule, it can exist to share the past with the future and create an ongoing message of love. Contact me today to see how you can connect the past with the future.

Disclaimer: The materials contained on this page are for general informational purposes. This information should not be considered formal legal advice and does not create a lawyer/client relationship.

The Nitty Gritty

Wills vs. Trusts? 

Estate planning can be confusing. Often when we think about estate planning we think of someone with a lot of money, not someone that we identify with ourselves. We picture this person who looks nothing like ourselves sitting down and dictating their wishes to their trusted advisor or attorney telling them what they want to have happen with their property when they die - recording their final wishes. Then we see the family gathered in front of the attorney in the fancy office as the will is read. But estate planning is not just for the "other people" out there, it is something for all of us. 

For anyone who has started considering the need for estate planning the question is always "Do I need a will or do I need a trust?". Sometimes we get to this question after we figure out what the difference is between a will and a trust, sometimes we ask this question before we know the difference. Since the answer to the question of will vs. trust depends entirely on the difference between the two, we'll start there in deciding which to prepare.

A will is a document that starts working when the author passes away. It identifies who they want to receive their property and who they want to raise their minor children (if they have any) after they are gone. It is a document that requires the use of the courts to make it effective - the court will oversee your wishes being carried out, your minor children being settled with their guardians, the creation of a trust for your children and your property being distributed to your heirs. 

A trust is similar to a will in that it also lays out where your property and your minor children will go, but it does so without the use of the court system (except for the settling of minor children, the court always oversees that). With a will the court is involved in every step of the process, while for a trust  the court's involvement is very limited. A trust is different in that it often covers more issues than a will and it has the ability to continue to make decisions into the future. 

The ability to carry decisions into the future is one of the biggest benefits of a trust when you have minor children. Not only are you able to control who gets what, but you are also able to control when they get it. You can decide that your children should receive their inheritance from you not as a lump at the age of 18, but instead you can spread it out over many years so they have fallback in the future once they become wiser in their spending habits and life decisions. 

A will can be very effective if you have no children and no property, just personal belongings. It makes it clear to the people you care about what you want to have happen with your property and your remains. Since it has complete court oversight any squabbles that arise are sorted out by an impartial judge. If it is used when you have very little property to transfer, the cost can be minimal.

The ultimate decision of will vs. trust depends on many factors, and belongs to each of us. Doing so with the help of a compassionate estate planning attorney can turn a confusing process into a satisfying expression of love for the life we have lived and for the people we have been fortunate to share it with. Reach out to the Law Office of Michelle D. Smith today to learn more and get started.

Disclaimer: Michelle D. Smith is a California Licensed attorney, SBN 233515.  The materials contained on this page is for general informational purposes, it should not be considered formal legal advice and does not create a formal lawyer/client relationship.