Complex Problems | Clear Solutions | What You Should Know About Wills | What You Should Know About Trusts
Disability Planning | Personalized Service

Complex Problems

Estate planning is more complex today than ever. You have worked a lifetime to accumulate your assets. The transfer of those assets can be threatened by estate taxes which can significantly impact your wealth. Effective estate planning can minimize death taxes and estate settlement cots and deliver an orderly distribution of assets.

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Clear Solutions

The attorneys at Bullard Law Firm PC will work with you to make your estate plan clear and understandable. We will provide you with alternative strategies. We will assist you in making the important decisions to help you transfer your assets. We will create and implement a personalized estate plan to meet your goals. The end result will be an estate plan which fits your personal situation.

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What You Should Know About Wills

A Will provides the necessary instruction as to what you want to happen concerning your affairs after you die. You need a Will if you own any property or if you have any minor children. You can identify who you want to receive your property and who you want manage your affairs. You can also appoint a guardian for your minor children and arrange for the management of money on their behalf until they reach an age where you feel they can manage their own business. You can also leave behind burial or cremation instructions related to your final remains. If you do not leave a Will behind, you will have given up your right to decide who manages your affairs, who inherits your property, who raises your minor children, and other decisions crucial to your loved ones. Dying without a Will can complicate your estate tremendously. Please allow us to help you draft your Will and explain the tax consequences of your estate plan to you. We can assist you with the detailed requirements for a valid Will and reduce any unwarranted probate costs and expenses. The legal fees to draft a Will is money well spent.

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What You Should Know About Trusts

Living Trusts have grown increasingly popular as substitutes for Wills in estate planning. Depending on your situation and circumstances, Living Trusts may have several advantages such as tax reduction, probate avoidance, conservatorship avoidance, and control. A Living Trust is created with a document called a living trust agreement. Many of your assets can be transferred into the Living Trust. You can act as the Trustee of the Living Trust during your lifetime as long as you are not disabled. You can also be the sole beneficiary of the trust during your lifetime if you choose. The Living Trust will provide details on your rights to change the trust, the duties of the trustee, how to distribute your property, how to provide for your family, and appoint a successor trustee. You can cancel or change any of the provisions of your Living Trust prior to your death or disability. You will need to review your Trust on an annual basis to make sure that it continues to meet your needs. You will also need to have a Will because not all of your assets may be conveyed into your Trust prior to your death. A Will leaving everything to your Trust is called a “pour-over” will. Unlike the Will which only becomes operative upon your death, a Living Trust becomes operative during your lifetime to manage your affairs even when you are able to do so yourself. For tax purposes, during your lifetime, the trust property is treated as if you remained the owner and you report all taxable events under your own social security number. Under some situations, a Living Trust can avoid estate taxes although that depends on your financial circumstances at the time of your death. The advantages of a Living Trust mush be carefully weighed against the expense and effort of creating and administering the trust.

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Disability Planning

With a durable power of attorney, you designate another person to manage your financial affairs. You can have this authorization take effect immediately or upon the occurrence of a specific event such as disability. You can make the powers granted to your representative as broad or as narrow as you decide. For example, you can empower the person you name to pay your bills, file your tax returns, apply for benefits, or sell your property, among other actions. A durable power of attorney will not terminate even if you are physically or mentally incompetent. A power of attorney does terminate upon your death.

With a medical power of attorney, you designate an individual to act as your agent in dealing with your health care if you cannot manage this yourself. A medical power of attorney can apply to all medical decisions any time you become incompetent. It can include specific instructions about the treatment you may or may not want.

A living will is a written statement of your wishes regarding the use of any medical treatment. Living wills are generally limited to decisions about life-sustaining procedures when you have a terminal illness or death is imminent.

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Personalized Service

Bullard Law Firm PC will provide you with solutions and alternatives. You will make the final decisions. Please contact us for confidential, highly customized, personal estate planning service.

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