St George Estate Planning

Not All Estate Plans are Created Equal

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September 15, 2017 By sunrise

Living with a Lawyer

I am the Dawn of the end of his life. At least that’s what my dad says. My name is Dawn Brock and I am the youngest of E. Lawrence Brock’s children. For as long as I can remember my dad has had his own law office in Chino, California. The office has been as much a part of my life as living in my house. I visited the office long before I ever started working there. When I was little, if my dad forgot something at work I would go back with him to retrieve it. When  I got older, I started working there as the cleaning lady. Slowly, I gained more responsibility until I became a secretary. So many memories include that office and going to there has always been an important part of my life.

My dad has always been my amazing father, but he has also always been a lawyer. He never explicitly stated to us children that protecting our assets and having an Estate Plan was important. However, by watching him work and how he deals with his clients showed it to be an important truth.

For the longest time, I didn’t know what an Estate Plan encompassed, but I knew its importance. I knew it had something to do with protecting your assets after you died and distributing your valuables to those you wanted to receive them. However, I didn’t know the extent of what an Estate Plan does for you. Now, after years of working for my father, I have a limited knowledge of what an Estate Plan entails. I can’t explain it in any official capacity but maybe my simplistic view can shed some light on what may appear as a complicated process.

First, an Estate Plan is more than just one document. It is a group of documents that together protect you more completely than just a Will or Trust alone. The documents include a Trust, a Pour-Over Will, a General Power of Attorney, an Advanced Health Care, the HIPAA, and the Assignment of Personal Property. These main documents make up the contents of most Estate Plans. Each aspect of the Estate Plan does something different, but as a whole, they all work together to give you the greatest protection possible.

The Trust, the largest document, explains where all your assets go and who gets what after you pass away. The Pour-Over Will is, in essence, extra insurance for any assets not in the trust. It states that anything you own not already in the Trust will be distributed by or pored over into the Trust. The Power of Attorney is the document that explains who will be in charge of decisions for you when you are no longer able to make sound decisions. The Advanced Health Care tells the doctors how long to or not to keep you on life support and other medical procedures. The HIPAA tells the doctors who you have allowed access your medical records. Finally, the Assignment of Personal Property is the document that gives you the ability to give specific assets to specific people.

People might wonder why there needs to be so much detail in an Estate Plan. Why can’t they just write a will stating this person gets this and that’s all? Even though that sounds simpler, in the end, it isn’t. If you create a Will in that manner most likely something will be forgotten. That one forgotten thing can create a wedge that will leave an estate in Probate for years. As the daughter of an Estate Planning attorney, I think it is easier to contest a document with vague wording, rather than a set of documents that all work together to create a secure future for your assets and your legacy.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Values Based

September 11, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #20: Do You Have a Plan for Possible Incapacity?

Designed to deal with your affairs after death, an Estate Plan can also help prepare for incapacity. A thorough Estate Plan will name someone to take care of you and your assets if you become incapacitated. With the correct design, you can implement your plan in case of incapacity without the necessity of talking to doctors. Many of whom will not want to become involved in deciding if you have the capacity to sufficiently handle your financial affairs. You can create your own definition of incapacity through a well-designed Estate Plan.

The well-designed Estate Plan can be simple. If you have a Revocable Living Trust your affairs can be handled expeditiously. This allows your children to receive control of their assets sooner than if they must go through probate. Probate can become long, time-consuming, expensive, and complex; all the things of most people do not want.

A complete Estate Plan will have an Advanced Health Care Directive. This document allows you to decide many medical decisions before they arise. Including:

  • how long you want life support
  • how much pain medication you receive
  • what to do if you have Alzheimer’s or dementia
  • or other issues concerning long term diseases.
  • decisions regarding blood transfusions
  • organ donations
  • autopsy
  • and memorial and funeral instructions.

An Advanced Health Care Directive can contain all of this information. With a complete Estate Plan, you will give your family peace of mind because they know what your desires and wishes are.

A complete Estate Plan will also have a Durable Power of Attorney for property management. Some assets, such as retirement plans or 401ks, are not entered into the trust. If you become incapacitated or disabled the individual who has Power of Attorney for you can now manage those assets. The Power of Attorney enables your agent to transfer your assets into the Trust in the case of your incapacity. The Power of Attorney permits your agent to talk to the IRS and deal with them if necessary.

A complete Estate Plan can include all of these documents and then some. It allows you to plan for many different potential scenarios all while helping provide peace of mind for you and your heirs.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

September 8, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #19: In Case of a Lawsuit, Do You Want to Protect Your Assets?

Imagine, one year your child wants a pool party to celebrate their birthday. A day of swimming and playing in the water sounds fun and harmless so you agree. The invites sent, every child in the neighborhood eagerly awaits the party. When the day arrives everything seems to be going according to plan. The children are having a blast in the pool and laughter is abounding. You step inside to grab the cake when you hear a crash and the sound of a child crying. Rushing back outside you find a neighbor boy has slipped on the wet concrete and appears to have injured his arm. Concerned, his parents rush him to the hospital where they discover he broke his arm. Within a week, papers are delivered to your door. The boy’s parents have filed a lawsuit against you and are now suing you for medical expenses.

Years ago this scenario would have seemed extreme, but situations like this are occurring more and more often. Asset protection is a bigger concern today than it was in the past. People are more prone to file a lawsuit now than they were before. This has led to almost everything having a warning label for information that can seem like common sense, just in case. However, people still sue others and it can be difficult to protect against such lawsuits.

While difficult to protect your assets from a lawsuit or creditor’s claim it is not impossible. You can make a gift to your children in your Estate Plan. When worded correctly such a gift can protect the assets. Then, they should not be subject to creditors and lawsuits.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

September 4, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #18: Do You Care If Your Assets Are Consumed?

Heat radiates from the flames spreading across the open field. The firemen rush to contain the fire. It has already consumed much of the landscape in its path. Despite gallons of water dropped on the flames, they continue to grow. The situation continues to go from bad to worse. Miles away a family sits watching the horror unfold on the evening news, a fire burning safely in their fire place. This fire provides warmth and a sense of security. The family watches as finally, the firemen contain the flames but it is too late; the damage done, most of the field is lost.

Those fires could be your assets in the future. If you have a $500,000 parcel of real estate in California and that is the only asset the total probate costs could exceed $26,000. If the equity in the property is only $100,000 the fees are still $26,000. Just like the field on fire, fees consume your assets. Eventually, everything works out, but with a huge portion lost to fees.

If that same estate is in a Revocable Living Trust then the fees to transfer the property to your heirs will be considerably less than $26,000. Therefore your heirs will receive a greater percentage of your estate because of your complete Estate Plan. This is the warm, safe fire, resting comfortably in the fire place. However, just like an incorrectly used fireplace can create danger, an Estate Plan prepared incorrectly may cause fighting among the children. This could lead to a substantial amount of the assets being consumed. It is not unusual for probate or trust litigation to consume 30%, 40%, 50%, or more of the assets of an Estate.

A solid Estate Plan created specifically with your family in mind is not only the fire in the fireplace. It is fire insurance in case something goes wrong.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

September 1, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #17: Are Your Sons or Daughters-in-Law Perfect?

Divorce is never thought about at the beginning of a marriage. However, situations arise that may lead your child to seek a divorce. If that happens you don’t want your child’s inheritance to end up with your son or daughter-in-law. With out the proper planning, that may happen. Without the correct documents prepared appropriately, the gifts you leave your child may end up with their spouse. Developing or designing an Estate Plan where it stays with your child and grandchildren is possible.

If a child’s marriage fails, you can protect that child’s inheritance. An Estate Plan allows you to prevent your child’s inheritance from becoming part of the marital property. As a result, this will prevent its loss in a marital settlement. Protected in an Estate Plan, your assets remain maintained by your child until they pass it along to their children. Not given to the ex-son or daughter-in-law in a divorce.

Creating an Estate Plan this way can ensure that valuable family heir looms stay in the family. Whether it has monetary value or sentimental value the gifts you leave your children will be invaluable to them.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

August 28, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #16: Do You Want to Give Your Family Guidance for the Future?

I have a horrible sense of direction. I truly do. When I first learned how to drive I got lost almost every time I went someplace new. I would even look up directions to places only a few blocks away. Then I would print out those directions, and take them with me. I did this because I knew I was terrible at remembering directions. I had to really learn to pay attention. It took a while but eventually my sense of direction improved. I have learned how to identify major streets and follow patterns in different neighborhoods. I still get lost occasionally. However, now I have an easier time finding my way again. Just like how I needed directions for the road some people need directions for their lives.

A personalized Estate Plan can give guidance to the trustee. It can explain how you would like your assets distributed in particular situations. Children are often prone to frivolity. This could lead them to spend all the money you left them without much serious thought. With the guidance provided in an Estate Plan, the trustee can help your children grow and mature before they can choose that option. After all, you would not give a 16-year-old the keys to a powerful sports car the first day he received his driver’s license. Instead, you would spend time training that 16-year-old to help them learn how to manage the car. The same idea applies when giving your children their inheritance. Give them the Trust and Estate Plan to provide guidance and training for handling the resources you entrust to them.

You would never provide your children with a large check without knowing what they wanted it for just because they asked. Instead, you would inquire as to why they want the money and then help them handle the funds in a mature way. An Estate Plan can give that guidance. Not only at the immediate time of your passing, but for guidance in the future as well.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

August 25, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #15: Who Is In Charge After You Pass Away?

You look down and notice the little flashing light on your phone. Suddenly your focus has shifted from your task at hand to finding your charger so your phone doesn’t die. In many ways, you are the charger of your family. Yes, your children go out into the world and live their lives, but occasionally they come home. You provide them with a sense of comfort and infinite strength that is hard to find outside the home. Just as your charger gives your phone battery strength, you give your family strength. So what happens once you die? Who becomes the new charger, or who is in charge?

One of the biggest problems people fight over in settling an estate administration is who is going to be in charge. If you don’t make that decision before you die then your children may fight over who will be in charge or have resentment towards the siblings in charge. One possible solution is to name an independent third-party trustee or trust company to be in charge. This could be a viable option for many reasons. Some of those reasons include the cost, the fighting, the feeling that somebody is being taken advantage of, or the feeling that somebody is getting more than other children. When you do your plan you tell them what you want.

Remember you are the charger that powers your family and helps hold them together. You lose that strength after you die. I have seen too many situations where the family splinters. Creating an Estate Plan is a way to keep that charge solid.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

August 21, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #14: Do Your Children Change?

The short answer: yes. I have changed so much throughout the years and I have watched those I love change as well. I haven’t just changed from being a child to a teenager to an adult. There have been moments of growth and change throughout my entire life. New experiences happen daily and help me to learn and grow. I make mistakes, especially when I don’t fully understand what is happening around me. Those mistakes have helped me become a better person. While change is not always pleasant, such as losing a loved one, it is a necessary part of life. And with the change of death, your children will have to deal with the legal ramifications of the situation.

Navigating the legal processes after you die can and will be difficult for your children. This is compounded by the very real sting of you not being there to guide them through their emotional distress. However, death is a great catalyst for change. This scenario is made easier or harder depending on how well you planned before your death. An Estate Plan is an excellent way to protect your children after you pass away. It can help guide your children towards a constructive distribution while steering them away from a family argument. You can design an Estate Plan that gives the trustee discretion in distribution to help guide your children. In this way, their challenges or imperfections will not cause them to lose their inheritance.

A detailed Estate Plan can help navigate the turbulent waters that inevitably come for everyone. Nothing can prevent death, but it is possible to help make the transition easier for those who are left behind.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

August 18, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #13: Do You Have Minor Children?

One of the main reasons for Estate Planning, particularly if you have minor children, is to designate guardians. You have to decide who will care for your children if you both pass away. An Estate Plan allows you to do more than choosing who can provide for your children. It allows you to designate those you don’t want to have guardianship of your children.

Further, you can give the future instructions to potential guardians on how you want your children raised. When someone babysits your children you make sure to leave them specific instructions. You tell the babysitter when bedtime is, any potential allergies, and any other advice to help keep your children safe.  Similarly, an Estate Plan allows you to give detailed instructions to potential guardians. Your personalized Estate Plan can be a guide for possible guardians of your children. It can explain what is important to you when it comes to raising your children. Even after you are gone, your values can be taught to your children. By leaving instructions in your Estate Plan, help raise your children after you both pass away. Creating an Estate Plan allows you to dictate the values and character traits taught to your children.

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

August 14, 2017 By sunrise

Twenty Questions #12: Do You Want to Disinherit Someone?

Unfortunately, sometimes there is a falling out between someone you love and yourself. While never expected, never planned, and never an easy experience, these situations still arise. Rifts form between people and create problems leading to close friends or family drifting apart. When this happens, you probably want to disinherit the person who drifted away so that they don’t receive the same inheritance as those who stayed by your side.

Without an Estate Plan, you cannot plan for that sort of situation. Cutting themselves off, hurting you, stealing property, deceiving you, and absent for 30 or 40 years; without an Estate Plan, this leads to them receiving the same amount as the child who has always stayed close. While one child is close by and always assisting in caring for you, showing you love and respect, the other is off pretending you don’t exist. For both children to receive the same inheritance seems like an unfair reward for the one causing you pain. Without a complete Estate Plan, the black sheep child will receive the same as the good children.

 

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Values Based Estate Planning Tagged With: Estate Planning, Family, Twenty Questions, Values Based

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St George Estate Planning
E. Lawrence Brock, Attorney & Counselor

Address: 193 S 100 East, St George, UT 84770
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Phone: (435) 688-9117

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