At its simplest, estate planning is the process of putting a plan in place to ensure a person’s wishes regarding their property, personal and financial care, and family are honored when they die or become incapacitated and cannot make those decisions on their own.
A plan can include the following considerations:
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Who will receive a person’s property when they die and how it should be received
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Who should serve as guardian of any minor children
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Who is best qualified to make a person’s health care decisions in the event they cannot speak for themselves
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Who should make financial decisions for a person if they become incapacitated
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What are a person’s end-of-life instructions, such as whether or not they would like to be resuscitated, be kept on life support or receive artificial hydration and nutrition if they are in a persistent vegetative state or terminal medical condition, or whether they wish to donate organs
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How a person can provide for family members with special needs
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How a person can provide for loved ones who may need future protection from creditors or in divorce
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How a person can transfer their business upon their retirement, disability, or death
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How a person can minimize taxes, court costs, and unnecessary expenses and legal fees
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And much more!
Estate planning should be an ongoing process, not a one-time event. Circumstances inevitably change as time goes by—marriage, divorce, children, illness, and retirement. An estate plan should be a living document that evolves as your life does. Estate Plan Design Center can guide and advise you as you move through the milestones of life.