Estate Planning
Love, Fleming, Bearsch & Halloran serves its clients in the area of estate planning by preparing wills, powers of attorney, advanced health care directives, trust agreements, and guardianships. Our attorneys focus on each client’s personal needs while advising on tax planning, estate planning, minimization of state and federal estate, inheritance and gift taxes, and the necessity and benefits of trusts.
Our estate planning services include:
- Wills
- Powers of Attorney
- Advance Health Care Directives
- Trust Agreements
- Standby Guardianship Designations
WHAT SHOULD YOU BRING TO YOUR ESTATE PLANNING MEETING?
By: Shobita C. DuBois, Esq.
There are many reasons why you should meet with an estate planning attorney to help plan for the future, not the least of which is the well-being of your beneficiaries. You can help your estate planning attorney understand the dynamics of your family, your assets and your desires as to the distribution of your property by bringing to your first meeting certain documents to assist in that process.
If you previously had Wills, Powers of Attorney, Advance Health Care Directives or Trusts prepared by another attorney, bring them with you so they can be reviewed first to determine if they need to be updated. Prepare an informal assessment of your financial situation, listing assets and liabilities and how each asset is titled. This is the time to gather other important documents such as the Deed to your primary home (and any other real estate you may own), life insurance policies, bank account numbers, retirement accounts, titles to cars and boats, and other similar documents. If you have online access to retirement accounts and life insurance policies, print out the beneficiary designation forms so the accuracy of those designations can be confirmed.
In addition, prepare a list of family members, including their full names, addresses, home/cell phone numbers, dates of birth, and relationship to you. You are most likely to be choosing your beneficiaries and fiduciaries from this list, so having their personal information on hand will help your attorney when preparing your estate planning documents. You should be thinking about who you want to receive your property after your death, and in what proportions.
Many of the specifics of your estate plan will be discussed at your initial meeting with your attorney. Your attorney will guide you through each choice you will need to make, but the final decisions are entirely yours.
Shobita C. DuBois, Esq. focuses her practice in the areas of Estate Planning, Business and Real Estate. She can be reached at 410-838-7100 or at sdubois@lfbalaw.com.