Estate Planning

Parents holding the hands of a toddler

Basic Estate Planning Documents:

When you think of estate planning, think of preserving your wealth and nominating individuals to handle your legal matters according to your wishes.

Estate planning is for everyone, not just individuals with a high net worth. Estate planning is key to:

1. Tax savings

We will ensure your estate plan optimizes the tax savings available to you. Small differences in how you structure your estate plan can mean huge differences in taxes down the road.

2. Decision making

Everyone has a Will - either you wrote it, or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts wrote it for you. When someone dies without a Will, their assets are distributed according to statutory guidelines.

If you want to be the one to decide what happens to your assets, estate planning is for you!

3. Avoiding conflicts

We will ensure your documents are enforceable, strategized to accomplish your objectives, and that your beneficiaries can rely on our office to serve as a “situation room” when needed.

Your estate plan can prevent conflict between family members later on, as they are faced with both grieving and making difficult decisions. When the Will is clear and binding, there is much less to fight about.

  • A will comes into play only at the time of an individual’s death. In your will, you name who should receive the property that you hold in your individual name.

    A Will is especially important if you have minor children. In a Will, you nominate guardians who would care for your chuldren. If guardians for your children are needed and you have not nominated anyone, individuals who believe they should be appointed can petition the Court to be appointed – which may result in will decide who should take custody of them.

  • While most people consider a Will to be the main estate planning document, a trust can be much more effective.

    A trust is a device that can hold legal title to your assets. One or more trustees manage the assets for the benefit of those you name as beneficiaries. In many trusts, you can be both the trustee and the beneficiary. The trust can also name successor trustees and beneficiaries.

    A trust is in effect during your life, unlike a will, which only comes into play at an individual’s death.

    Trusts can help you avoid taxes, plan for eligibility for state and federal benefits, protect your assets from creditors, and set conditions for when and to whom to distribute your assets. There are many types of trusts that can accomplish various goals.

    Revocable trusts can allow you to retain control of your assets, including by transferring them back out of the trust.

    Another major advantage of a trust is to avoid probate.

    Probate is the court action that distributes the estate. In a trust, you don't own the assets in your individual name - the trust is its own legal entity.

    Upon an individual’s death, property held in the individual’s name must pass through probate. This can take quite a long time, and during that time, any expenses related to the property continue.

    By contrast, if property is held in a trust, the assets remain held in the trust according to the terms of the trust. This often represents a significant savings for the beneficiaries (for instance, if real estate can be listed for sale rather than sitting empty), as well as a less burdensome process.

    A trust can allow you to retain total control of the asset. Estate planning can only be based on the information that we have at the time. Young, healthy people plan to live a long time, and their planning reflects that. As people age, and their goals shift to preserving their estate for their beneficiaries rather than their own expenses, different strategies are needed.

    A trust also allows you to retain control beyond your lifetime. You can protect your children's inheritance beyond age 18. The trust names trustees who have a fiduciary duty, which means they are required to safekeep the property for your children's benefit. You, as the creator of the trust, write the directive for when they can distribute funds.

  • This grants another person the authority to manage your finances. The Durable Power of Attorney will ensure that those you entrust with your financial affairs are able to pay bills on your behalf, buy and sell assets, make gifts on your behalf, and otherwise manage your finances.

    We will ensure that your Durable Power of Attorney is as specific as possible, for financial institutions to rely on your directives.

  • In a Healthcare Proxy, you choose someone who can make decisions for you if you are not able, and you provide directives for that person to follow.

    The Living Will portion of your Healthcare Proxy states your wishes regarding resuscitation efforts, organ donation, and any plans for disposition of remains and a celebration of life.

  • HIPAA releases allow medical providers to release medical information to the individuals that you name.

When you call to discuss putting your wishes in place, we will guide you through your options and help you enact the best plan for you and your family.

You don’t need to have every decision made — we can propose solutions that you may not have considered. You can revisit your estate plan as you wish. The most important thing is to put the necessary documents in place to ensure that you use every protection available to preserve your wealth, to carry out your wishes, and to provide for your loved ones.

We look forward to speaking with you.

“At a time when I was unsure where to turn, Andrea came to my aid. She was exceedingly knowledgeable and readily available for all my questions and concerns via phone, email and in person. In court, her poise and assertiveness along with her steadfast knowledge of the laws pertaining to our case made for a very favorable outcome. I would very highly recommend Andrea to anyone seeking legal counsel.”