Estate Planning Law
A MAP. Thomas believes every estate plan should be based on a map deeply rooted in the most current law and time tested best practices. Life is like being on a boat in the ocean, and your plan should be built to withstand its ever changing and unpredictable nature. With this in mind, Thomas counsels you on the importance of considering the implementation of four primary instruments to create an enduring plan for life and death: a will, a trust, an advance health care directive, and a power of attorney. He listens attentively to your wishes and employs his knowledge to help craft an estate plan specifically tailored for your life’s journey.
WILLS
A will is a written document that you create to designate who gets your estate property when you pass away. You must have one, and it must be valid to avoid state distribution of your property. A will is often paired with trusts to regulate or powers of attorney to execute how you want the property to be managed, sometimes long after you are gone. However, a will by itself is quite limited in providing management options compared to a trust, and generally just dictates how your property will be distributed soon after your death. Despite these limitations, some people, like those who do not own property over certain levels significant in probate or tax law, might just need a will rather than a trust. A will is often most useful in designating specific gifts, like grandfather's pocket watch or mother's hand-sewn quilt, to be handed over to a special person along with a heart-warming message. A will is the foundation of any estate plan. You may not need a trust. But any well-built estate plan will require a will.
ADVANCE HEALTH CARE DIRECTIVES
An Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD) is a written document that you can create to appoint a health care decision agent as well as to make your own health care decisions known in advance. You should take time to reflect and discuss the implications of your choices made in the AHCD with loved ones and caregivers (medical and spiritual if applicable). Your health care decisions agent can have a great deal of power over your life when you are unable to make decisions for yourself, so you want someone whom you trust with your life. However, you can limit the power of your agent, by making decisions ahead of time that cannot be changed. You can give the power back to the agent too by allowing them the last word based on their trusted assessment of the situation. You can decide to deny or allow the administration by a health caregiver of life-sustaining treatment (e.g., CPR, ventilator machine, breathing/feeding tubes, pain relief medication) or the donation of your organs and tissue for medical purposes. Having an AHCD that represents your wishes properly, can make all the difference in living and dying with dignity.
TRUSTS
A trust is created by you, typically through a written instrument like a will or a specific trust agreement, where you identify a person to be a trustee who holds title to designated trust property for the benefit of your beneficiaries. You can be your own trustee during your life. Other people you trust can be your trustee when you are incapacitated or have passed away. These other trustees will have your permission to take care of your personal affairs, using your trust property, as you have instructed them within the trust agreement. You can create trusts to suit many purposes. Some common ones are parents planning for the welfare of their minor children if they were to die early or grandparents wanting to ensure that their grandchildren will have enough money to go to college. But a living trust, which operates while you are alive and is revocable, that you regularly manage and have set up for times when you cannot care for yourself should be the first trust you should consider.
POWERS OF ATTORNEY
A Power of Attorney (POA) is an extremely powerful written document where you designate an agent (aka your "attorney-in-fact") and give that person the authority to handle your financial affairs. Ideally, your agent will be a loved one who is either good with finances, or is discerning enough to know how to seek proper help when needed. You can decide if you want your agent to have the authority to do a little or a lot for you. However, you need to be aware of exactly what you are allowing your agent to do on your behalf through the POA. You and your attorney should spend the time necessary to understand the grant of authority and the ramifications of various agent actions on your well-being. Careful attention must be given to the drafting of the POA considering your specific situation and the potential for abuse. Drafted a certain way, your agent could sell your house, drain your bank accounts, or even change your estate planning documents. This is why selecting someone you trust with your life is critical. There are several choices to be made in creating a POA. However, the key decision is to determine who has your utmost trust.