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Archive for the ‘Family Meeting’ Category

Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way

Sarah Savasky
August 7, 2014

It’s true that not everyone will benefit from a trust as part of their estate plan, but most people will benefit from a will. If you have a will you have a way to make very important decisions that could have a huge impact on your family after you’re gone.

Without a will you are letting the government make those decisions for you. Here are some of the decisions the state gets to make if you die without a will (also known as dying intestate).

The state gets to decide who your property goes to. mystatewill.com

1. The state gets to decide who will be the executor of your estate.
2. If you have minor children, the state gets to decide who will become their guardians and manage their estate.
3. Your estate will pay the government to make these decisions for you.

Most of us don’t want to think about our death, so we put off making important decisions, but it’s important to realize that if you don’t decide, the government will do it for you.

You Can’t Take it With You

Sarah Savasky
June 26, 2014

We all understand that “we can’t take it with us” but determining the best way to leave our things behind can be confusing.

Both a will and a trust allow you to choose who receives your assets after you die. A will also allows you to nominate a guardian for your minor children. For most of us, the main benefit of a revocable living trust is that it avoids the expensive and time consuming process called probate (I’ll talk more about probate in my next post). For the very wealthy a trust can also avoid or minimize estate taxes. A trust also allows you to plan for your incapacity and to provide for a child with special needs after you are gone. A will can be used as a stand alone document without a trust. However, a trust is used in combination with a will. In this situation the will is sometimes referred to as a pour over will and it serves as a back up plan in the event that some or all of your assets have not been placed in your trust.

If your estate is small (under $150,000) you might not benefit form a trust, because small estates are exempt from probate, but money isn’t the only consideration that’s why it’s so important to consult with an estate planning attorney to determine which type of plan is best for you.

“The only thing you take with you when you’re gone is what you leave behind” –John Allston

What is a Conservatorship?

Rachael Phillips
June 18, 2014

Conservatorship is a Court-supervised process through which an individual obtains the authority to manage the personal care and/or finances of another individual who lacks capacity to handle those matters for himself or herself.  The conservator is appointed by the Court, and is required to periodically account for the use of conservatorship funds. The conservator must also obtain Court authorization before taking certain actions.

General probate conservatorship is commonly used in the cases of individuals who have suffered a head injury or stroke, or who have dementia. In addition to general probate conservatorship, there are two special types of conservatorship: limited conservatorship and LPS conservatorship.

Limited conservatorship works similarly to general probate conservatorship, but is used specifically in the case of an individual with developmental disabilities. The authority of the limited conservator is specifically tailored to minimize the restrictions placed on the limited conservatee, recognizing that the developmentally disabled individual may have greater capacity than an individual who would require a general probate conservatorship.

LPS conservatorship is used specifically in the case of individuals who lack capacity due to mental health issues, to the point of posing a danger to himself or herself, or others. This type of conservatorship can allow the conservator to have the mentally ill conservatee committed to a mental health facility, or to force them to take psychiatric medication.

All types of conservatorship are Court supervised, and the conservator can be a family member or friend of the conservatee, or a private professional fiduciary. In cases where there is no family member able or willing to act as conservator, and insufficient funds to a pay a private professional fiduciary, a county official called the Public Guardian can be appointed.

Family Meetings

Ann Robbeloth
June 4, 2014

A family meeting can improve our ability to navigate changed circumstances.  Common changes that impact families in estate planning are the aging process, health issues, or death of a family member. Information may need to be provided, or decisions made. These are emotional times.  It is important to realize that there are legal implications at play as well as everyone’s personal feelings. There are two types of family meetings.  The first type is an informal meeting held at the home of a family member, and run by the person who is most comfortable taking on the role.  The second type is more formal, and is run by a professional.  The second type is best if the family has difficulty identifying or agreeing to a point person to lead the meeting, or if there are specific questions that everyone would like to have answered that are technical in nature and best answered by a professional.  Sometimes a combination of meetings over time works best, as circumstances continue to evolve, and questions are raised at an informal family meeting.