Wills

When a death occurs without a will established, any assets that were owned by you will become intestate. The probate court will then decide the heirs, which can become a long process. When no will exists it also does not guarantee any specific estate beneficiary. Plus, with no will, the inheriting family may end up...  read more

As a testament, the will is a legal document stating a person´s final wishes following their death. With that, it is considered to be a major part of the individual´s estate. Although the will can be created by the individual, it can also be produced with the help of an attorney specializing in estate planning....  read more

We all know the importance of a will. This applies primarily to senior citizens, but we should all have a choice written in advance as life is unpredictable. You may not be familiar with this, but most of a person’s typical household assets, like retirement accounts, qualify to be transferred outside of a will unless...  read more

Losing a loved one can be very hard, but the situation can be made even worse if their estate doesn’t pass through probate quickly and easily. Many people find that they can’t really get a sense of closure until probate is over. However, if the estate’s executor doesn’t seem to be doing their job, probate...  read more

While it doesn’t often happen, there is a legal process in place for the executor of an estate to resign from that position. When this occurs, it does often mean that the probate process comes to a temporary halt, but this delay may not be very long. If you are an executor who is considering...  read more

If you’ve written a will, you may feel like your estate is now protected. However, while that is true for your current situation, it’s not necessarily the case for the future. Your will needs to be updated regularly because your life, and your estate, is likely to change. Here are a few reasons why it’s...  read more

One of the most difficult parts of estate planning, for some people, is determining how to divide their assets. If you have very few assets or know that your heirs will be in agreement over how you divide things up, you may not worry too much about it. However, if you have a large number...  read more

In your will and on your various accounts, you have named who your heirs are and what they will receive. However, what would happen if you and at least one of your heirs were to die at the same time? It can happen in a car crash or other accident. There are some things you...  read more

When most people think about beneficiaries, they immediately think about insurance policies and perhaps retirement accounts. Few people, unfortunately, think about their bank accounts or savings accounts. These are the two types of accounts that often do not have beneficiaries listed on them. If you are married, that’s not typically a concern—your spouse will inherit...  read more

Many people have family heirlooms that they have inherited from their parents or grandparents. Some of these items may have been in your family for generations and hold significant sentimental value, if not actual monetary value. Even those that aren’t as old, such as a piece of jewelry your grandmother owned, may be considered valuable...  read more