Estate Planning
- Wills
- Living Trusts
- Power of Attorney
- Guardianship Proceedings
PREPARING FOR YOUR FAMILY’S FINANCIAL SECURITY
You’ve worked hard for what you have. Along with asset ownership comes responsibility. Assets must be managed properly and maintained in such a way that in the event you die or become disabled, your family will derive benefits with few administrative burdens and minimal court involvement. A well reasoned estate plan developed with the advice of your attorney can help prepare for your family’s financial security in the event of your death and ensure that your property is distributed according to your wishes.
THE REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST
As part of your estate plan, you may wish to consider establishing a revocable living trust. The purpose of a living trust is to administer your assets during your lifetime and distribute those assets at death.
Some primary reasons for creating a revocable living trust are as follows:
Probate Avoidance:
Assets held in a living trust on the grantor’s death are not subject to probate administration. Probate avoidance may be convenient and can save the cost of the administrator’s/executor’s fees and attorneys’ fees. A living trust, however, is not without its own costs, particularly those associated with transferring property to the trustee.
Privacy:
The use of a living trust creates privacy. A will is a public document that must be filed with the circuit clerk upon death and can be read by anyone. A living trust is not required to be filed in the public record.
Asset Management without Court Adjudication of Incompetency:
If you become disabled due to mental or physical deterioration, a living trust may eliminate the need to seek a court adjudication of incompetency and the appointment of a guardian for your estate. The trust agreement may contain a provision that deals with this contingency.
Avoiding Will Contests:
The validity of a living trust may be more difficult to contest than a decedent’s will. The living trust, thereby, helps ensure disposition of a decedent’s assets as intended.
THE WILL
A will is a written direction made by a person for the disposal of his or her property after death. The contents of a will depend upon each person’s unique situation and his or her estate planning goals. For instance, a will can be used to accomplish any of the following estate planning goals:
- To give property to a spouse, child, charity, or some other person or entity. This disposition may be appropriate where the property is being given to a competent adult, non-profit organization.
- To establish a testamentary trust(a trust that does not come into existence until after death.) As part of the probate of the will, property will be conveyed into this trust and managed by a trustee for the benefit of the persons or entities designated in the will. This type of arrangement may be beneficial where the property is being used to care for minor children or a disabled spouse.
- To designate a person or persons, known as guardians, to care for any minor children and manage their financial affairs. If no such direction is made in a will or other document approved under state law and both parents of the minor child are deceased, the court will appoint a person or persons to act as guardian(s) for a minor child.
- To minimize the effects of estate and gift taxes.
DYING WITHOUT A WILL
In the absence of a will directing the manner in which property is to be distributed and naming a representative to manage the property and affairs of the deceased, a court will appoint a representative and apply state distribution laws. For instance, if you die without having created a valid will, then you have died intestate. In Illinois your property will pass to your heirs according to the rules set forth in the Illinois Compiled Statutes that deal with descent and distribution of an intestate property. This means that your property may not be distributed in the manner you would have chosen.
It is important to remember that the manner in which a valid will is created and interpreted is determined by the law of each state.
We can help you prepare a valid will and ensure that the language used in the will is appropriate to accomplish your estate planning goals.
Guardianship Proceedings
Guardianship proceedings may be instituted on behalf of persons who are legally incapable of making or communicating responsible decisions. This can be due to a person’s tender years, such as a minor who has lost their parents, or because of a person’s disability due to traumatic injury or disease.
One of the most prevalent situations occurring today, is when an older person succumbs to Alzheimer’s disease (also known as senile dementia). Once a person is no longer capable of making financial decisions, they are legally incompetent and the task of having a legal guardian appointed by a court of law falls to the primary caregiver.
The Illinois Probate Act provides the rules governing guardianships and requires that court proceedings be instituted, that doctor’s reports be provided, and that official notices be served on all blood relatives of the disabled person. After a disabled person’s estate is properly opened, letters of office are issued by the court enabling the guardian to conduct business on behalf of the disabled person.
Court costs, attorney’s fees, and guardian ad litem fees are all incidental expenses which are borne by the estate of the disabled person. The guardians responsibilities include caring for the estate and person of the disabled person and providing, inventories and annual reports to the court.
We can help you with instituting guardianship proceedings.