Estate Planning

A good Estate Plan includes a will, durable power of attorney, health care proxy and an advanced directive.

Sometimes a simple trust will keep property out of probate procedure as well as controlling the amount of cash a youthful beneficiary will receive. Julie was requested to establish a trust that would not allow funds to be diverted to messianic cults nor to purchase a new Corvette. Many people want to provide for college and vocational costs and fees.

We can advise you who owns Grandma’s engagement ring and whether you can challenge her will. We also advise Grandma to gift her ring during her lifetime and if we were the authors of her will, we would have assessed her mental capacity to make decisions and sign the documents.

We help our clients simplify the estate planning process and minimize the legal procedure while keeping the fees reasonable. We can help you update your plans from when your children were babies and if you have moved here from another state. Very often, documents can simply be amended. We stay current with changes in Massachusetts and applicable federal legislation and regulations and we don’t hesitate to confer with probate court personnel regarding the often confusing rules and forms they require.

An Estate plan is an important gift for your family, because it provides a clear road map for them that you have created. You will identify who you want to be in charge of your property at your death, who is in charge during your lifetime, who will act on your behalf in the event of illness. We are able to tell disgruntled family members that we must abide by your decisions

Our Estate Plans are not “one-size-fits-all” documents. In preparing your Estate Plan, we ask the right questions to understand how you want to manage your property – real estate, jewelry, home furnishings, investments and everything else. We have looked at the advertisements for on-line wills “good in every state” for less than a hundred dollars and we have reviewed wills from those sites brought to us by clients. We find that the information in those documents is often inaccurate, incomplete and not “good” in Massachusetts. We also know that some estate planning is done to set up a lengthy and expensive probate procedure. We believe your time and money is better spent on the planning for uncomplicated asset and health care management.

We will work together to create an estate plan that memorializes your wishes.