Estate Planning
| The process of estate planning begins the same with all our clients: we listen. We listen so that we can formulate an estate plan that reflects that client's unique values, concerns, and intentions regarding what they have accumulated and how they wish to provide for those most important to them. We assemble the relevant factual information regarding the value of the estate, the ages and needs of proposed beneficiaries, the nature and location of estate assets, and other relevant considerations to create an estate plan that will: |
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- preserve the estate assets for the lifetime needs of the client and the client's loved ones
- provide orderly and efficient distribution of the client's estate to the intended
beneficiaries - minimize taxes imposed on the estate to the extent possible
- be efficiently administered by a willing, trusted, qualified individual or institution
- provide peace of mind to the client as well as a predictable situation for the loved ones after the client's death.
Some clients' goals can be accomplished with a traditional will. For others, we offer more complex planning strategies, such as planning for:
- transfer of ownership of a business
- children from different marriages or relationships
- family members with special needs whose inheritance could place government assistance in jeopardy
- loved ones with vulnerabilities that would make outright gifts inadvisable (such as chemical dependency or creditor problems)
- gifts to charitable, religious, or educational institutions.
We are happy to collaborate with our clients' other professionals such as financial planners, insurance professionals, and accountants to accomplish the most effective plan possible. Estate planning is not a one-time event; it must be revisited throughout one's lifetime to make sure that the estate plan is appropriate in light of changes that occur in one's family, financial situation, life goals, or changes in the law. We wish to periodically hear from clients to ensure that their estate plans maintain their effectiveness.
In an effort to get as much information as we can, we encourage everyone that comes in to the office for estate planning services, to fill out an Estate Planning Questionnaire form. This form collects information from a wide variety of categories. We encourage prospective clients to fill out this as completely as they can prior to our initial meeting in order to better understand their needs.
Download your Estate Planning Questionnaire.
For more information or assistance, please contact us at (423) 710-3689 or use the form on our contact page.