What a Florida Estate Planning Attorney Can Do For You
While a properly drafted and executed last will and testament will suffice to transfer assets to your heirs and beneficiaries, it will not resolve problems with probate avoidance, estate taxes, or ensuring your choices are respected in the event of incapacity. To fully protect your lasting legacy, a Florida estate planning attorney can show you how to:
• Transfer assets from your estate while maintaining the control and benefit of the assets during your lifetime, and at the same time avoiding or minimizing the burden and expense of probate;
• Reduce exposure to estate taxes by means of a revocable living trust;
• Make sure that all assets are transferred into the living trust by means of the pour-over will;
• Ensure the guardianship of minor children to avoid the need for a formal guardianship proceeding;
• Prepare a life insurance trust that can either serve as a means of transferring assets outside of probate upon death, or as a fund from which estate taxes can be paid if they cannot be avoided altogether;
• Set up a durable powers of attorney to designate a trusted individual to make financial decisions on your behalf in the event of incapacity;
• Create advance health care directives to cover medical decisions, outlining your preferences for medical treatment and life support under extreme and terminal conditions and organ donation. At the same time, these documents can protect both you and your family from the difficulty and expense of a conservatorship.
