Estate Planning

Estate planning involves many considerations and various legal devices to make sure your heirs (beneficiaries) receive your property according to your wishes.  I will work with you to create a personalized estate plan based on an evaluation of your personal situation, including age, health and financial status; family relationships and family’s financial circumstances; personal financial data, including: personal property, real estate holdings, securities, and other property; and tax situation and any debts or obligations.  Your personalized estate plan will utilize one or more legal devices including a will, trust, healthcare directive or living will, power of attorney, and beneficiary designations.

Most individuals die owning both probate and non-probate assets, all of which generally require some type of documentation to properly transfer the asset to its intended beneficiary or rightful heir.  Non-probate assets may include those assets that the decedent desired to transfer at the time of death by contract (e.g. joint and survivorship property), payable on death accounts (POD), transfer on death property (e.g. TODD), or life insurance and retirement benefits.  Probate assets include those assets that the Probate Court transfers through its probate proceedings in Probate Court.  Individuals can plan for the manner in which they would like to transfer their property at death.  Davey Law will work with you to understand the advantages and disadvantages to using non-probate or probate proceedings to transfer property and help you determine the best manner in which to hold your assets.

Wills – A will determines what happens to your property after your death by stating who will receive it and in what amounts.  In addition to distributing or transferring property, a will may have other functions, such as naming a guardian for any minor children or to create a trust and designate a trustee to handle an estate (property left after death) on behalf of children or others. A will may also be used to name a personal representative or “executor” to handle a decedent’s (the person who died) property and affairs from the time of death until an estate is settled.

A person does not need to have a large estate to plan and prepare a will. Anyone who owns personal property (e.g. cash, stocks, jewelry, furniture) or real property (e.g. house, land) should prepare a will. If married, each spouse should prepare a will.

Updating a Will – You should review and update your will as conditions and circumstances change. For example, changes may be necessary when:

• Your family changes as a result of a birth, adoption, marriage, divorce or death;
• Substantial changes occur in the amount or kind of property owned;
• Tax laws change;
• Residence changes from one state to another;
• The designated executor, guardian or trustee can no longer serve; or
• You decide—for any reason—to change the distribution of your estate.

Trusts – A trust means an agreement under which someone holds and manages money or other assets for the benefit of a person.  Several different types of trusts exist.  Depending on the total value of your estate, your specific assets, and your specific estate planning goals, you may require the creation of one or more trusts.

Taxes – The use of an estate planning device like a trust may help you achieve certain goals, such as reduction of taxes. However, while devices like trusts can offer a number of tax advantages, tax avoidance should not be your sole motivation for using this estate-planning tool.

Healthcare directive or Living Will – This document allows you to appoint another person (called an agent) to make health care decisions on your behalf if a doctor decides you can no longer do so and to give this person written instructions regarding what health care decisions you would want made regarding:

• treatment, service, or procedures
• stopping or not starting health care which may keep or might keep you alive
• which health care providers to utilize
• where you will live when you need health care and what personal security measures to take to keep you safe
• obtaining copies of your medical records and allowing others to see them.

Power of attorney – A power of attorney authorizes someone to act on your behalf in a legal or business matter.  In Minnesota, you may execute a broad-sweeping or very narrow power of attorney.  I will work with you to identify how a power of attorney fits into your estate plan.  I will help you identify what form your power of attorney should take (ether custom-drafted or statutory short form power of attorney).

Beneficiary designations – Some of your assets may permit you to designate a beneficiary.  These assets include a variety of financial devices like life insurance, retirement accounts, and investment accounts to name a few.  When you designate a beneficiary you describe to whom the name asset will be distributed upon your death.  I will work with you to make sure that your beneficiary designations have been clearly written to make sure they become legally binding and meet your wishes.

Estate Administration / Probate Administration

Most individuals die owning both probate and non-probate assets, all of which generally require some type of documentation to properly transfer the asset to its intended beneficiary or rightful heir.  Most individuals who have a valid will use it to name a guardian for any minor children or to create a trust and designate a trustee to handle the estate (property left after death) on behalf of children or others. The will also usually names a personal representative or “executor” to handle the decedent’s (the person who died) property and affairs from the time of death until the estate is settled.

Contact Davey Law to assist with the administration of the decedent’s estate.  We will help you make sure that you properly collect, maintain, and distribute probate assets among the decedent’s heirs, beneficiaries, and/or creditors according to the direction of the decedent as expressed through a will and the laws of Minnesota.