Wise Legal Estate Council

The Importance of having Wise Counsel In the Estate Process

Much of the documentation regarding estate planning is specific to the state you reside in, so it is important to make sure what you have drawn up, is up to date and matches the legal requirements of where you reside. Also documents should be reviewed every few years, to keep up with any potential law changes.

You may be asking yourself, can’t I just find out the documents needed and prepare them myself? You can, but there is a bigger picture to consider. For starters, there are ten documents needed to fully cover all aspects of your estate, AND they all have to coordinate with the same legal terminology. Conflicting documents will only add confusion to the process. Another factor to consider is jointly owned assets and how to manage those rights, as normally the other owner(s) will be granted the ownership of the asset. There are also concerns with creditors, lawsuits, divorce, conflicts with co-owners, and other beneficiaries. Do you, for example, want partial ownership of a family business to end up being owned by undesirables? Special clauses can be made to ensure family property stays within the bloodline. There are too many potential unwanted outcomes by doing things on your own without a full view of what needs to be addressed.

Do pre-planning, Be prepared, Prevent issues like these:

Creating a comprehensive estate plan is more affordable than you may think. An experienced attorney has done this hundreds of times, a do-it-yourselfer has done it once. With detailed legal documents such as these, one mistake could invalidate your whole plan.  Also you if own assets in multiple states, paperwork must be done accordingly, which complicates the process even further. Taking the time to do the proper initial steps and maintenance with expert legal help will be you and your family’s wisest investment.    

” One mistake could invalidate your whole plan”