Trusts + Estate Planning
Your Last Will and Testament is the document which outlines who shall receive your belongings and wealth after your passing. Some people elect to leave everything to their spouse, and then to their children in equal shares if their spouse does not survive them. Other people elect to have everything pour over into a trust they created and funded during their lifetime, and some people elect to leave everything to a non-profit. There are endless options regarding who you would like to leave your belongings and wealth to and we can help you achieve that goal.
A Durable Power of Attorney is a document that designates an agent (and typically an alternate agent if the first agent is unavailable) to make your financial decisions if you become incompetent during your lifetime. Incompetence can be temporary or permanent, and it is important to designate individuals you trust to make those decisions when you are no longer able. We can walk you through the power that your Attorney in Fact (the person or people named in your Durable Power of Attorney) will have upon your incompetence, the potential pitfalls in naming the wrong person, and the steps you can take to ensure that you are minimizing the potential for poor decision-making by your agent should you become incompetent.
A Healthcare Power of Attorney designates an agent (and typically an alternate agent if the first agent is unavailable) to make your healthcare decisions if you become incompetent during your lifetime. Not only will your healthcare agent potentially gain access to your protected health information, they will also be faced with making some of the most difficult decisions anyone will ever make for you, and decisions with the most lasting impact. It is important to choose your agent(s) wisely and to appropriately outline any concerns or desires you have for your future healthcare appropriately so that your agent is equipped with the right information to exercise their power with your wishes in mind.
A Living Will, also commonly known as an Advance Directive, is a document that addresses your desires should you reach a point in your life where you may be kept alive by artificial means which are generally referred to as “life support.” This document can give your healthcare agent and your doctors insight into how you would like potential end-of-life decisions to be handled.