The Petrosewicz Law Firm Estate Planning Blog

Does Your Estate Plan Have All the Right Stuff?

A last will and testament is the document which parents need, to legally nominate guardians to rear their children if orphaned. It clearly delineates who should take care of the children and who should manage the money available to care for the children, as noted in The Daily Sentinel’s article titled “What is missing from your estate plan?”

While some people name one person to rear the children and handle the money, it’s a good idea to separate the two roles.

Without these instructions in a will, those left behind can have very different ideas about where the children should live and who should care for them. If the two parents’ families have very strong opinions, suddenly both families have hard choices to make about what will happen to the children.

No parent wants to leave a legacy of court battles and family division.  However, that’s what is likely to happen without a will.

There are other issues that estate plans address while you are alive.  It is also necessary to plan for incapacity. A living will, also known as an “advance directive,” is important because it helps pre-answer questions, regarding what treatment and care you would want if unable to speak for yourself. Do you want to be kept alive by artificial means? You do not want your loved ones making this decision during a time of great emotional stress, so this is an important document to have in your estate plan.

Finally, your estate plan should include a medical durable power of attorney to deal with all other medical decisions other than end of life. Without it, if you are not near death but not able to share your opinions about your care, your family and your medical providers are placed in a difficult position. In contrast, those who care enough about their family designate an agent and ensure that their wishes are made legally binding.

The big question everyone must face is “When should I start working on my estate plan?” If the answer is “Later,” then the real answer is “No time soon.” For young parents, that puts your minor children in a bad position, where a court may make the decision about who will rear them and how their lives will go on after you are gone.

Don’t make your family have to go through more than they would have to anyway. Speak with an estate planning attorney to create your estate plan, including these very important documents.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Resource: The Daily Sentinel (Aug. 12, 2018) “What is missing from your estate plan?”

Fathers, Protect Your Children with an Estate Plan

There are as many definitions of a good father as there are good fathers. However, one thing everyone agrees upon, is that good fathers are responsible people, says Fatherly in the article “If You Do One Thing For Your Kids, Plan For Your Death.” A good father takes care of his children and keeps the world around them in working order. Responsibility is the backbone of parenting, and in our society, where ideas around masculinity are entwined with the concepts of leadership and authority—whether we think those concepts are flawed or gender-biased or not—a father is supposed to take care of things, with no loose ends.

The question is why do so many great dads turn into little boys, when it comes to addressing the tasks of having a will prepared and creating estate and guardianship plans for their children? Many say getting dads into their offices to get the process of creating an estate plan started, is extremely difficult. Having conversations about who should rear their children, if they should die, is nearly impossible.

The same dads who are obsessive about getting their collector cars tuned up every three months and checking smoke alarm batteries monthly, will keep putting off the will-signing appointment for months or years at a time.

It’s a superstitious thought: if I don’t have a will, I don’t die.  However, it’s more than that.

Many men feel that if they don’t have a lot of money, why bother with a will? Others say they don’t care what happens, since other people will figure out what to do after they are gone. Some say that their fathers didn’t have a will and things worked out. If you grew up in a family where estate planning and wills were discussed and not considered taboo subjects, you will be more likely to have an estate plan in place.

Sometimes, the men whose fathers were difficult about having a will, are more proactive about creating a will, since they don’t want to do what their dad did.

However, if you have the responsibility of fatherhood, you must have a will. A will is used to name a guardian (the person you want to raise your children), if you are dead or incapacitated. It can also name a person who will take care of the money left behind for your children. Children are perhaps the biggest reason for dads to have an estate plan.

Failure to have an estate plan means that a court will make the decision about who will rear your child and opens the possibility of a family battle over who will have that responsibility.

Don’t be like your dad if he was one who refused to have a will and left a mess for the family to clean up after his passing. Don’t avoid visiting your estate planning attorney. Remember that you are a model for your children and this is another way that you can show them that being a good father means taking care of the details—even when they are difficult.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Reference: Fatherly (Sep. 12, 2018) “If You Do One Thing For Your Kids, Plan For Your Death”

Why Do So Many Pastors Pass on Estate Planning?

A survey conducted on behalf of the Southern Baptist Foundation found that more than half (!) of all Southern Baptist pastors do not have a will, trust, living will, electronic will, legacy story or durable power of attorney with healthcare directives.

The results of the survey, which are detailed in an article from Baptist Press titled “Young or old, many pastors lack a will, survey finds,” present a contradiction. When asked how important estate planning was, 74% said it should be considered a part of a person’s financial stewardship.

Basic planning saves a lot of headaches for loved ones. With an estate plan, assets can be protected, and taxes can be minimized. While it’s understandable why people might want to procrastinate, the reality is that not having a will can have a devastating impact on the family and on the estate.

The survey reveals that pastors age 18-44 are least likely to have a will or a durable power of attorney with health care directives.  However, even among pastors closest to retirement, ages 55-64 and 65 and up, only 54% have a will. Only 25% of these groups have a durable power of attorney.

One concern is that pastors with young families do not have a will in place. They do understand (64%) that in the absence of a will, the court decides who will care for a child, if the last parent dies without a will.

48% of the pastors agreed with a statement that if someone dies without a will, the family decides what happens with the assets of the deceased.

The fact is, for property and children, the court decides what happens, if there is no will in place.

Having a will protects the family in many ways. It protects minor children by allowing the parents to decide who they want to be given the responsibility to rear the children—a guardian—and to also select a person who will manage the funds left for the children.

A will also allows a person to express their wishes regarding the distribution of their assets. An estate plan can be designed to minimize tax liabilities and, if used in combination with certain trusts, control how and when assets are distributed.

Speak with an estate planning attorney to have a will created that reflects your situation and protects your family.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Reference: Baptist Press (Aug. 31, 2018) “Young or old, many pastors lack a will, survey finds”

Why You Need a Last Will and Testament

There are three documents at the core of estate planning that allow people of modest means and people of great wealth to protect and convey their health care and financial wishes during incapacity and death: the durable general power of attorney, the durable health care power of attorney and the last will and testament.

This is the subject of an article from The Daily News that asks “How Useful is a Last Will and Testament?” According to the article, a will is an individual’s post-mortem (death) plan to distribute one’s assets. They are almost always written down. There have been instances of verbal wills in other states, but verbal wills are not valid in Texas.  A will can be used to dispose of nearly anything which the person, known as the “testator” (if male) or “testatrix,” (if female), owns or has an ownership interest.

Any person who is legally competent can sign a will, provided they are aware of who they are, what assets they own and to whom they want to give those assets. Estate laws vary from state to state, so it would be wise to have your will prepared by an estate planning attorney in your state.

Wills are used to transfer tangible property as well as real estate, money and ownership interests in businesses, stocks and other entities. While most beneficiaries are humans, wills can be used to name charities, trusts, businesses and animals as beneficiaries. For animals, some people have “pet trusts” created to protect their pets, if they should outlive their companion animals.

One benefit of having a will, is the ability to decide for yourself who should inherit your possessions. If you die without a will, the state’s laws determine what happens to your possessions. That is known as dying “intestate.” Anything you own that does not have a beneficiary designation or surviving joint owner, will be passed automatically to your legal next of kin.

If you don’t have a will, aren’t married and have no children, your estate will be distributed to your next of kin.

If you have young children and die without a will, the court will appoint a guardian to rear your children. It may not be the person you would have chosen. If you have young children, you should have a will made without delay, to name a guardian and a person to be in charge of managing your money that is left for your children.

A will may be revoked, changed or amended at any time, if the person is legally competent.  However, because it is a legal document, it should be created with an estate planning attorney to make sure it complies with your state’s laws and is created to accurately and independently reflect your wishes.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Reference: The (Memphis) Daily News (Aug. 30, 2018) “How Useful is a Last Will and Testament?”

Does Your Estate Plan Have All the Right Stuff?

A last will and testament is the document which parents need, to legally nominate guardians to rear their children if orphaned. It clearly delineates who should take care of the children and who should manage the money available to care for the children, as noted in The Daily Sentinel’s article titled “What is missing from your estate plan?”

While some people name one person to rear the children and handle the money, it’s a good idea to separate the two roles.

Without these instructions in a will, those left behind can have very different ideas about where the children should live and who should care for them. If the two parents’ families have very strong opinions, suddenly both families have hard choices to make about what will happen to the children.

No parent wants to leave a legacy of court battles and family division.  However, that’s what is likely to happen without a will.

There are other issues that estate plans address while you are alive.  It is also necessary to plan for incapacity. A living will, also known as an “advance directive,” is important because it helps pre-answer questions, regarding what treatment and care you would want if unable to speak for yourself. Do you want to be kept alive by artificial means? You do not want your loved ones making this decision during a time of great emotional stress, so this is an important document to have in your estate plan.

Finally, your estate plan should include a medical durable power of attorney to deal with all other medical decisions other than end of life. Without it, if you are not near death but not able to share your opinions about your care, your family and your medical providers are placed in a difficult position. In contrast, those who care enough about their family designate an agent and ensure that their wishes are made legally binding.

The big question everyone must face is “When should I start working on my estate plan?” If the answer is “Later,” then the real answer is “No time soon.” For young parents, that puts your minor children in a bad position, where a court may make the decision about who will rear them and how their lives will go on after you are gone.

Don’t make your family have to go through more than they would have to anyway. Speak with an estate planning attorney to create your estate plan, including these very important documents.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Resource: The Daily Sentinel (Aug. 12, 2018) “What is missing from your estate plan?”

Now Is a Good Time to Revisit Your Estate Plan

Even with the doubling of the individual estate gift and GST tax exemptions to about $11.2 million per person (and double the amount for married couples), you still need a will, says Forbes in a useful article titled “7 Reasons to Revisit Your Estate Plan, Trump Tax Law Aside.”

A will serves as the primary vehicle to convey your intentions for your assets and explain your legacy. The provisions of the will can be used to designate how assets will be transferred, whether outright to beneficiaries, to existing trusts or into a new trust that is created under the provisions of the will. If you use the will to create a testamentary trust, the will is where you specify the age for distributions to the beneficiaries and other important details. The will is also how you convey your wishes to make a gift to specific institutions and who should receive family heirlooms.

The executor or personal representative of the estate is the person or institution in charge of managing your affairs, after you have passed. The executor gathers all the information about your estate, including assets and debts, filing taxes and administrative tasks. That person is named in the will.

If you have minor children, or a child with a disability, you want to choose a guardian and a successor guardian. If you do not, the court will appoint someone to rear your child(ren), and that may not be the person you would have wanted. Your spouse is always the obvious choice, but there are instances where both parents die unexpectedly, with no plans in place for their children.

There are many different types of trusts used to accomplish different things. They can be used to control assets and their distribution, which is particularly important when minor children are in the family. Trusts should be used when there is an individual in the family with a disability, an addiction or other issues who cannot manage their finances on their own.

Tax planning is a major part of any will. For a long time, estate planning attorneys focused on how assets were titled, so that the first of a married couple to pass would be able to fully use their estate tax credit.  However, the relatively new concept of “portability,” which allows any unused credit from the first spouse to pass to be used for the benefit of the second spouse, eliminates the need for any unused estate tax credit to go into a bypass trust.

Not only do you need a will, but this year you should consider reviewing your will if you have not done so. The new tax law may have eliminated or reduced some estate tax liability, but it has not eliminated the need for mindful and proactive estate planning.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Before You Have a Baby

Having your first child is an exciting time in anyone's life.

People make all kinds of plans about the child. Names are picked out. Nurseries are built. Detailed plans about how to get to the hospital on the big day are decided. Plans to have grandparents come out to help take care of the new baby are often made.

All of those things are important.

In the frenzy of making those plans, people often forget that they need to make some financial arrangements before the baby is born, as Business Insider points out in "The first 3 things to do with your money before you have a baby are easy to overlook."

Things that you should do include:

• Make sure that you understand health insurance and how to get your new child on your plan as soon as you possibly can. If your employer provides your insurance, then speak to your HR representative about what you will need to do.
• Make sure that you have plenty of access to cash. Children often require parents to spend cash in emergencies. You will need to have liquid assets, so you can do that. A financial advisor should be able to assist you in getting those liquid assets.
• Think about who you would want to be the guardian of your child, if anything should happen to you. You should then go to an estate planning attorney and get a will, so the person you want to be guardian will be appointed by the court.

The Petrosewicz Law Firm can assist you with your estate planning needs.  Contact us today at (281) 344-9455 or [email protected].  

Reference: Business Insider (August 22, 2017) "The first 3 things to do with your money before you have a baby are easy to overlook."