Estate Planning Attorney - Plano, TX

A solid estate plan consists of several parts, and each one is exceptionally important.

• Revocable Living Trust: Unlike an estate plan that depends solely on a Will, a Trust can be used to distribute a person’s assets upon incapacity or death. A revocable living trust is a preferred estate planning tool for mixed families, because it allows the owner to more easily deconflict issues.
  
  
• Irrevocable Trust: A strong succession plan includes a discussion regarding taxes and asset protection. This is where irremovable trust comes in. They can be extremely helpful at helping reduce taxes and protecting assets from litigation. 

• Durable Power of Attorney: Not every succession is caused by death. In the event you’re unfit to handle your own assets, choosing a Power of Attorney will let a trusted individual act on your behalf. Of course, this power will terminate upon death, generally blocking the agent from accessing the assets without moving through the probate process. With a trust, the agent, if selected as the trustee will still be able access these assets without having to go to court.
  
  
• Medical Power of Attorney: This is a document list exactly who will make medical decisions for you when you cannot. It is key to make rational selections when deciding which individuals make the most sense to serve as your agents. Who realistically will honor your wishes.
  
  
• Healthcare Directive: This is a directive you create before you are too ill to make your own decisions that relay your medical wishes to professionals treating you.
  
  
• In Hospital Do Not Resuscitate: This is an in hospital DNR signed in the hospital by a physician.
  
  
• Out of Hospital Do Not Resuscitate: This is an out of hospital DNR signed by a physician.
  
  
• Guardianship Nominations: Have you ever considered what will occur if you have children and you and your spouse pass away? Have you ever considered what will occur if you personally lose capacity, but your body is healthy and you will continue to live many years? This is where guardianship nominations come in. Why leave it to the court when you can choose beforehand.  This decision may save your family costs and deconflict many issues.                                                                                    
• Will: You’re likely familiar with wills. These are forms that highlight your last wishes and who you want to receive your assets.
  
  
• Pour Over Will: This is a specialized will dictating to the court that any assets not placed into the trust be placed into your trust upon your death.
  
  
• Will Protection: The measures taken to ensure your will remains unaltered, officiated, and legally binding.
  
  
• Beneficiaries: Your will can tell the government who gets what, but you still need to notify the companies managing your retirement accounts, asset portfolios, digital assets, and more to ensure they gain access. However, selecting an individual as a beneficiary can lead to a number of problems, especially if you are depending on this person to take care of another with the assets you have left them.  If this is a concern, it may make more sense to make your trust the beneficiary, so no one individual can make decisions without control being placed on them, so they can meet your intent.
  
  
• Minimize Taxes: The last thing your family wants is to be overwhelmed by taxes when inheriting your legacy. This step in the process takes action to minimize their tax liability.
  
  
• Funeral Plan: I have personally visited funeral homes that have told me that you are not getting a discount if you bring your desired to use without a prior plan. The time to create this plan is now. It will significantly reduce future costs.