Exercise Your Will Power to Protect Your Loved Ones – Part 2

Having a will ensures your loved ones are provided for. Read Part 1 of this post.

6. Who is in Charge?

Your estate trustee or executor is the person named in your will to distribute your stuff. Without your will, courts must appoint an estate trustee without a will. Executors can be family members, friends, or trust companies. There can be more than one executor. Professional trustees can manage trust funds for the financial security of dependants who lack financial expertise including, spouses, children or beneficiaries with needs.

Without a will, no one is in charge of your stuff until a court order appoints someone. This is expensive and can take months or longer to go through the courts. Without a will, no one knows where to start.

7. Lawyers Can Help

Explaining legal concepts and preparing wills to meet your estate needs are what lawyers do. Many people think that they’ll save money by preparing their own will however, if imprecise language is used, it can end up costing more money, in the long run. Why? Because of interpretation problems. Wills can end up in court for judges to decide what the words mean.

8. Make Plans

Making a will gives you assurance that your affairs are in order. Preparation of an estate plan includes powers of attorney to deal with incapacity and personal care issues. Consider funeral arrangements and organ donations too.

9. Revisit Your Will

If you have a will, a new business, separation, divorce or the birth of a child all mean your will must be reviewed or revised. Unless your will is current, it cannot reflect your needs. Changes in your assets, beneficiaries, estate trustees and the law require regular reviews of your will and estate plan.

10. Don’t Lose It

Remember to keep a copy of your will. Treat the original will as more valuable than gold and keep it in a safe place. Make sure someone knows where it is. What good is a well-written will if no one ever finds it?

Do you have a will? If you don’t, don’t wait. Contact me today to discuss your options to protect your family and reduce taxes. If you may benefit from a second opinion, let me help you today. Set up an initial meeting to discuss your options.

As a Certified Specialist, estate law is all I do.