A will can be a great estate planning tool that seeks to distribute assets after one’s death in accordance with his or her wishes. However, the effectiveness of this document is contingent upon its validity. Last week we discussed some of the ways a will can be contested and, ultimately, found to be invalid. The invalidation of a will can have a tremendous effect on an estate, which means that those engaging in estate planning need to make sure that their legal documents are drafted carefully with an eye for every applicable detail.
There are many estate planning tools that you can utilize, not just wills. Trusts and powers of attorney, for example, can each play a significant part in your estate plan. But, again, these documents have very specific requirements that must be met in order to be legally enforceable. When these requirements are not met, then the entire document can be rendered invalid. When this happens, your estate may have to go through the probate process. This can be expensive, time consuming, and ultimately lead to a distribution of your assets that is contradictory to your wishes.
To avoid such an unfortunate outcome, you may want to acquire the assistance of a skilled estate planning attorney. The legal team at the Moore Law Firm assists clients in a holistic fashion when it comes to estate planning. We sit down with our clients, identify their needs and the wishes for their estate and their beneficiaries, then identify the legal tools necessary to meet their goals. Then, armed with extensive experience in this field, we get to work crafting strong and legally sound documents that protect our clients’ best interests.
Engaging in estate planning can be a scary thing. After all, it involves confronting your own mortality. However, we find that our clients walk away from us with their minds at ease knowing that their estate and their beneficiaries will be taken care of when the time comes. We take pride in our work and the success we have helped our clients achieve, and we look forward to continuing that work with new clients.
