Search Results

Wills and trusts are two of the most commonly used estate planning documents, and they form the foundation of most estate plans. While both documents are legal vehicles designed to distribute your assets to your loved ones upon your death, the way in which they work is quite different. From when they take effect and the property they cover to how they are administered, wills and trusts have some key differences that you need to consider when creating your estate plan. That said, when comparing the two documents, you won’t necessarily be choosing between one or the other—most plans include both . In fact, a will is a foundational part of nearly every person’s estate plan. Yet, you may want to combine your will with a living trust to avoid the blind spots inherent in plans that rely solely on a will. As you’ll learn below, the biggest of these blind spots is the fact that if your estate plan only consists of a will, you are guaranteeing your family has to go to court if you become incapacitated or when you die. To determine the right solution for your family, you should meet with us for a Life & Legacy Planning Session. We offer a comprehensive process for helping you feel confident that you’ve chosen the right planning tools at the right fees for yourself and the people you love. In the meantime, here are some of the key differences between wills and trusts that you should be aware of. WHEN THEY TAKE EFFECT A will only will go into effect when you die, while a trust takes effect as soon as it’s signed and your assets are transferred into the name of the trust, known as “funding” the trust. To this end, a will directs who will receive your assets upon your death, while a trust specifies how your assets will be distributed before your death, at your death, or at a specified time after death. This is what keeps your family out of court in the event of your incapacity or death. Furthermore, because a will only goes into effect when you die, it offers no protection if you become incapacitated and are no longer able to make decisions about your financial, legal, and healthcare needs. If you do become incapacitated, your family will have to petition the court to appoint a conservator or guardian to handle your affairs, which can be costly, time-consuming, and stressful. And there’s always the possibility that the court could appoint a family member as a guardian that you’d never want making such critical decisions on your behalf. Or the court might select a professional guardian, putting a total stranger in control of just about every aspect of your life. With a trust, however, you can include provisions that appoint someone of your choosing—not the court’s—to handle your assets if you’re unable to do so. When combined with a well-drafted medical power of attorney and living will, a trust can keep your family out of court and out of conflict in the event of your incapacity, while ensuring your wishes regarding your medical treatment and end-of-life care are carried out exactly as you intended. THE ASSETS THEY COVER A will covers any asset solely owned in your name. A will does not cover property co-owned by you with others listed as joint tenants, nor does your will cover assets that pass directly to your loved ones via a beneficiary designation, such as life insurance, IRAs, 401(k)s, and payable-on-death bank accounts. Trusts, on the other hand, cover any asset that has been transferred, or “funded,” to the trust or where the trust is the named beneficiary of an account or policy. That said, if an asset hasn’t been properly funded to the trust, it won’t be covered, so it’s critical to work with your attorney to ensure your trust works as intended. Most lawyers will set up a trust for you, but few will ensure your assets are properly inventoried or funded, and we believe this is the single most important aspect of estate planning—and it’s one that is almost always overlooked. As your attorney, we will not only make sure your assets are properly inventoried and titled when you initially set up your trust, we'll also ensure that any new assets you acquire over the course of your life are inventoried and properly funded to your trust on an ongoing basis, with various maintenance plans to ensure your plan works when your family needs it. This keeps your assets from being lost and prevents your family from being inadvertently forced into court because your plan was never fully completed. Finally, even with the support of a lawyer like us, it can sometimes be difficult to transfer every single one of your assets into a trust before your death. Given this, consider combining your trust with what’s known as a “pour-over” will. With a pour-over will in place, all assets not held by the trust upon your death are transferred, or “poured,” into your trust through the probate process. HOW THEY ARE ADMINISTERED In order for assets in a will to be transferred to a beneficiary, the will must pass through the court process known as probate. During probate, the court oversees the will’s administration, ensuring your assets are distributed according to your wishes, with automatic supervision to handle any disputes. However, probate proceedings can drag out for months or even years, and your family will likely have to hire an attorney to represent them, which can result in costly legal fees that can drain your estate. During probate, there’s also the chance that one of your family members might contest your will, especially if you have disinherited someone or plan to leave significantly more money to one relative than the others. Bottom line: If your estate plan consists of a will alone, you are guaranteeing your family will have to go to court if you become incapacitated or when you die. Furthermore, since probate is a public proceeding, your will becomes part of the public record upon your death. This means everyone will be able to learn the contents of your estate, who your beneficiaries are, and what they inherit, setting them up as potential targets for scam artists and frauds. Unlike wills, trusts don’t require your family to go through probate, which can save them time, money, and the potential for conflict. Plus, when you have a trust set up, the distribution of your assets happens in the privacy of our office—not the courtroom—so the contents and terms of your trust will remain completely private. HOW MUCH THEY COST Wills and trusts do differ in cost—not only when they’re created, but also when they’re used. The average will-based estate plan can run between $1500 to $2,500, depending on the options selected. An average trust-based plan can be set up for $3,000 to $5,000, again depending on the options chosen. So at least on the front end, wills are less expensive than trusts. However, wills must go through probate, where attorney fees and court costs can be quite pricey, especially if the will is contested. So even though a trust may cost more upfront to create than a will, the total costs once probate is factored in can actually make a trust the less expensive option in the long run. That said, each family’s circumstances are different, and this is why as your attorney, we do not create any documents until we know what you actually need, and what will be the most affordable solution for you and your family, both now and in the future, based on your family dynamics, your assets, and your desires. With this in mind, our Life & Legacy Planning process is designed to compare the costs of will-based planning and trust-based planning with you, so you know exactly what you want and why, as well as the total costs and benefits over the long term. FIND THE OPTION THAT’S RIGHT FOR YOUR FAMILY The best way for you to determine whether or not your estate plan should include a will, a living trust, or some combination of the two is to meet with us as your attorney for a Life & Legacy Planning Session . During this process, we’ll take you through an analysis of your assets, what’s most important to you, and what will happen to your loved ones when you become incapacitated or die. Sitting down with us will empower you to feel 100% confident that you have the right combination of estate planning solutions to fit with your unique asset profile, family dynamics, and budget. Schedule your appointment today to get started or e-mail lauren@kaplanestatelaw.com with questions.

Getting married and starting a new chapter in your life is an exciting time. It’s also a time that requires a lot of housekeeping such as updating your address if your marriage includes a move, changing your tax filing status with your employer, and adding your new spouse to your bank and credit card accounts.  But did you know that creating (or updating) your estate plan should also be on your post-wedding to-do list?  Last week we started to explore the key estate planning components every newlywed couple needs to protect their rights, wishes, and plans for their assets now and in the future. This week, we’re continuing the conversation with three more estate planning must-do’s for newlyweds. If you missed last week’s blog, be sure to click this link to catch up . 04   | A Living Trust Are you surprised to see a Trust on our list before a Will? Here’s why a Trust is next on your to-do list. If you are newly married, there’s a strong likelihood that you are relatively young in your life and your career, which means there will be many changes in your assets, family, and wishes as the years go by. Or, you might be re-marrying or getting married later in life and already have a well-established home, financial portfolio, and family that you are now combining with your partner’s life.  In either situation, you’re in a position of blending your life as a single person with the life and wishes of someone else, and the best way to make sure your wishes for your assets and your new family are honored during your lifetime and after your death is to legally document them through a Trust. With a Will, assets must first pass through a court process known as probate before they can be transferred to your spouse or any other beneficiary. But once probate is completed, your loved ones can do whatever they want with the assets they received from you through your Will. The purpose and power of your Will ends when probate ends. The court probate process required for Wills can take months or even years to complete, and can often lead to ugly conflicts between your spouse and other family members. Plus, a Will only governs the distribution of assets upon your death that are not already covered under your Trust or by your beneficiary designations. With a Trust, no court involvement is needed, and you can set parameters for how you want your assets distributed over a predetermined amount of time. For example, if you have children or plan to, you can ensure the assets are safeguarded in the Trust until your children reach a certain age. If you have children from a prior relationship, you can also make sure that your new spouse is financially supported by your assets during their lifetime but that your remaining assets will be returned to your children after your new spouse’s death instead of going to your spouse’s side of the family. Having a Trust hold your children’s inheritance can also help eliminate conflict between step-siblings and between your children and your spouse. Even if your children are adults, leaving their inheritance in a Trust can help avoid family conflict and provide them with a lifetime of asset protection from creditors and lawsuits. Finally, using a Trust as the main vehicle to distribute your assets during your incapacity and after your death allows you to design a custom plan for what happens to your assets far into the future , ensuring that the goals you have for your loved ones are nourished and that your assets are carefully managed and protected even after you’re gone. You can do this by creating contingencies and incentives in your Trust that encourage your heirs to behave in certain ways. For example, for your sibling to receive their inheritance you could require that they seek drug counseling first, or that your children pursue a course of study before receiving a distribution of income from the Trust. 05   | A Will A Will allows you to designate who should receive any assets of yours that aren’t already included in your Trust or directed by beneficiary designations. Ideally, your Trust will include all of your assets. But, if you forget to add an asset to your Trust, a Will ensures that the forgotten asset is “poured over” into your Trust and included under its terms for how you want your assets to be distributed and managed. If you don’t have a Trust, your Will designates who will receive your assets through the court probate process. Your Will may also direct any charitable donations you want to make and can be used to create a Trust upon your death if the circumstances call for it- such as if one of your heirs is disabled at the time of your death. Even if you don’t think you need a Will because you don't have many assets or have other estate planning pieces in place, having a Will as a backup or “pour-over” tool is an essential part of your estate plan. Plus, depending on state law and whether or not you have children, your assets may not get divided according to your wishes if you don’t have a Will, so it’s always a good idea to create one (or update your old one) when you get married.  06   |   Legal Guardians for Your Minor Children Finally, if either you or your spouse have minor children from a prior relationship, or if you are planning to have kids of your own soon, it is crucial that you select and legally document guardians for your children. Guardians are people legally named to care for your children in the event that you or your spouse die or become incapacitated.  To make sure your children are never left in the care of strangers for even a minute, it’s crucial to name both long-term and short-term legal guardians for your kids. That way, someone you trust will always have the authority to be with your children during a short-term emergency or a long-term situation. Do not assume that just because you have named godparents or have grandparents living nearby that they will automatically have the authority to care for your children if you can’t. The only way to ensure that your children are cared for by the people you would want is to name guardians in a legal document. Otherwise, you risk creating needless conflict between family members and a potentially long, expensive court process for your loved ones. Planning for a Lifetime of Happiness If you’re newly married or are planning to be married soon, I wish you true happiness in your marriage and your new life ahead, and I truly want to help you protect the dream and future you are building with your new spouse. With the excitement of your wedding coming to an end, now is the best time to create an estate plan for your new family, and it may even be the most crucial time to create a plan for them.  We often think that incapacity and death simply don’t happen to newly married couples, but unfortunately, no one can predict the future. If an illness or tragedy does strike you or your new spouse, the ramifications of not having an estate plan in place can be even worse than for a couple who has been married for a long time. No matter the stage of your relationship or marriage, I can help make sure your spouse and family are protected and cared for now and for years to come. Through our Life & Legacy Planning Session process, I’ll guide you on the estate planning questions and decisions that are essential for your family’s well-being and that feel comfortable to you. To learn more about how I can help protect your family’s future, schedule a free 15-minute discovery call today.  P.S. Don't miss our upcoming webinar!

Wedding season is winding down, and if you are a newlywed or are planning to tie the knot soon, it’s time to make your first legal move as a married couple – creating an estate plan. With all the joy and happiness a new marriage brings, planning for your potential incapacity and future death may feel out of place, but creating your estate plan as part of your post-nuptial to-do list is the greatest gift you can give your new spouse. A lot changes once your marriage is official, but how you and your spouse want your finances to be managed or how you would want medical decisions to be made for each other are not automatically documented when you say “I do.” If you become incapacitated for any reason before your estate plan is complete, your spouse would not have the legal authority to make medical decisions for you even though you’re married. Your loved one would also have no access to your bank accounts, and in the event of your death, could even be put into a position of losing the home and possessions that you owned together. Instead, your choices for yourself, each other, and your life together need to be properly documented to ensure your wishes are respected and honored no matter what the future holds. Here are 6 essential estate planning tools you need to put in place right now. 01 | Updated Beneficiary Designations One of the easiest estate planning tasks that newlyweds often overlook is updating their beneficiary designations. Some of your most valuable assets, such as life insurance policies, 401(k)s, and IRAs, do not transfer via a will or trust. Instead, they have beneficiary designations that allow you to name the person (or persons) you’d like to inherit the asset upon your death. While every couple should consider creating and using a Trust to transfer retirement (only with the guidance of a lawyer, as this can be complex) or life insurance distributions, you shouldn’t wait until your Trust is created or your estate plan is complete to update your beneficiary designations. Until your estate plan is finished, if you would want your spouse to receive your retirement account benefits or life insurance at your death, you need to proactively name your spouse as your primary beneficiary, and then name at least one contingent, or alternate, beneficiary in case your spouse dies with or before you. If you have minor children at home, remember to never name a minor child as a beneficiary of your life insurance or retirement accounts, even as a contingent beneficiary. If a minor is listed as the beneficiary, the assets would be distributed to a court-appointed guardian, who will be in charge of managing the funds until the child reaches the age of eighteen, at which point the funds would be distributed to them outright, to do with what they want. Instead, you can set up a Trust and name the Trust to receive your life insurance or retirement account benefits. If you have children or you plan to have children in the future, you should set up a Trust to receive those assets instead so they can be properly managed for your child’s well-being while keeping the funds safe from any future overspending, debt, or legal trouble your child may have. Creating a Trust to hold and distribute assets to your children is even more important if your marriage creates a blended family, as it will ensure your children inherit from you in the way you want and avoid conflict between step-siblings. If you aren’t sure how to update your beneficiary designations in the best way, contact my office today for a Family Wealth Planning Session. During the Session, I’ll look at exactly what you own and guide you on exactly how your beneficiary designations should be filled out now and after your other estate planning tools like a Will or Trust are created. 02 | A Durable Financial Power of Attorney Estate planning is not just about planning for what happens when you die. It’s equally about planning for your life and the unexpected events life throws your way like a serious illness or accident that may leave you incapacitated. If you become incapacitated and have not added your spouse as an owner on your bank accounts or legally granted them permission to manage your financial and legal interests, they may have to petition the court to be appointed as your guardian or conservator to handle these affairs for you. This is surprising to many newlyweds and long-time married couples who assume their spouse has automatic access to all of their assets at any time. Sadly, this isn’t the case, and without giving written permission to your spouse through a Durable Financial Power of Attorney, that authority could be given to someone else by the court, even a stranger or a family member you would never want to have control over your financial life. A Durable Financial Power of Attorney would grant your spouse the immediate authority to manage your financial, legal, and business affairs in the event of your incapacity, and give them a broad range of powers to handle things like paying your bills and taxes, collecting government benefits for your care, selling your home or car, and managing your banking and investing. 03 | A Power of Attorney for Health Care and Living Will Where a Durable Financial Power of Attorney gives your spouse the authority to manage your financial and legal matters, a Power of Attorney for Health Care lets them make medical decisions for you if you can’t communicate them for yourself. For example, a Power of Attorney for Health Care would let your spouse make decisions about your medical treatment if you are in a serious car accident or hospitalized with a debilitating illness. If you don’t name your spouse as your Power of Attorney for Health Care and you do become incapacitated, your spouse would have to petition the court to become your legal guardian before they can make any major medical decisions on your behalf. Even though your spouse is generally the court’s first choice for your legal guardian, relatives may also petition the court to be appointed as your guardian, which can create severe conflict and financial strain in your family. Creating a Power of Attorney for Health Care that names your spouse as your decision-maker far in advance will spare your spouse the time, money, and stress involved with a court guardianship process. In addition to a Power of Attorney for Health Care, you should also create a Living Will . A Living Will explains to medical providers and to your decision-maker how you would want your medical care handled, particularly at the end of life. Because a Power of Attorney for Health Care and a Living Will go hand-in-hand, they are often combined into a single document. In your Living Will, you can explain your wishes for life support, whether you would want hydration and nutrition supplied intravenously, and even what kind of food you want and who can visit you in the hospital. It is always a relief to your spouse to have instructions and wishes written out by you in advance that they can lean on, rather than having the added stress and trauma of trying to guess what your wishes would be in these situations. Through Sickness and Health, We Can Help Between moving in together, establishing a new routine, and combining your finances, estate planning can seem like a low priority for newlyweds. But in reality, estate planning shortly after getting married is one of the smartest decisions you can make for your marriage. Creating your plan shortly after your wedding is also the most convenient time to plan since you will inevitably be going to the bank and contacting your financial institutions to update your new marital status. To make sure your new spouse has immediate access to your assets and that you can always care for them in the way they would want, give me a call. It would be my honor to help you and your spouse plan for your new life and your future through my unique, heart-centered process. If talking about finances and death shortly after your wedding feels heavy, don’t worry. I’ll guide the discussion in a way that feels casual, natural, and helps facilitate open communication between you and your new spouse. Click here to schedule an initial consult or e-mail lauren@kaplanestatelaw.com. Don’t forget to check back next week for part two of this series!

You’ve built a life with someone you love - sharing a home, experiences, and maybe even finances - but without legal marriage, the law doesn’t automatically recognize your relationship. That means if something happens to you, your partner could be left without legal rights to your property, finances, or even decisions about your medical care. In this article, you’ll learn why unmarried couples face greater legal risks, what key planning steps you can take to protect each other, and how my Life & Legacy Planning process ensures your wishes are honored, no matter what life brings. Why the Law Doesn’t Protect Unmarried Partners When married couples face illness or death, state law provides automatic rights and protections. But for unmarried partners, those rights don’t exist unless you’ve put them in writing. Without an estate plan: Your partner can’t access your bank accounts or manage bills if you’re incapacitated. They might be excluded from medical decisions, even if they know your wishes best. Your property could go to biological family members, not your partner, regardless of how long you’ve been together. For example, if you own your home in your name alone and you die without a plan, your partner could lose their home overnight - even if they’ve lived there for years or helped pay the mortgage. And while some states recognize “common law marriage,” those laws vary dramatically and apply only under very specific circumstances. Many couples assume they’re covered because they’ve lived together for years, but unless your state legally recognizes that relationship and you’ve met every technical requirement, your partner still has no rights under the law. These outcomes aren’t just unfair, they’re avoidable. With the right plan, you can give your partner the legal authority and protection the law won’t automatically provide. Essential Legal Tools Every Unmarried Couple Needs The good news is that with thoughtful planning, you can ensure your relationship is legally recognized in the ways that matter most. Here are tools I use in my Life & Legacy Planning process to protect unmarried couples: 1. Health Care Documents Without legal authorization, hospitals must turn to your next of kin, not your loved one, for decisions if you’re incapacitated. A Health Care Power of Attorney gives your partner the right to make medical decisions for you. Pair it with a Living Will or Advance Directive that outlines your wishes for end-of-life care, so your partner can advocate for you confidently. You can also include a HIPAA Authorization, which allows medical professionals to share information with your partner. Without this, privacy laws may prevent them from even knowing what’s happening. 2. Financial Power of Attorney This document gives your partner legal authority to handle financial matters if you’re unable to. Without it, someone will have to go to court to gain control, delaying urgent decisions like paying your mortgage or medical bills, keeping your life running smoothly during a crisis. 3. A Will or Trust A Will determines what happens to your assets after you die, and a Trust determines what happens after you die and if you are incapacitated. Without a Will or Trust state law dictates who inherits, and unmarried partners are not recognized heirs. Moreover, if you only have a Will, your loved ones will have to go through probate. Probate is a court process that can take months or years, often becoming expensive and emotionally draining - especially for someone who isn’t legally recognized as family. It’s also a public process. Anyone can view the court records to see what assets you had, the value of your assets, who your loved ones are and where they live, as well as other personal information you may not want available for public consumption. A Trust, on the other hand, avoids probate. Trusts can ensure your partner receives the home, joint property, or financial accounts you want them to have, without the delays and public nature of probate court. It also gives you flexibility to provide for other loved ones, like children, parents, or friends, while protecting your partner’s right to remain in the home or access shared funds.  4. Property and Beneficiary Designations Even the best plan fails if your assets aren’t titled properly, and beneficiary designations don’t match your intentions. If this happens, your assets may bypass your partner entirely. 5. A Written Cohabitation Agreement While not traditionally thought of as part of “estate planning,” a cohabitation agreement can be invaluable for unmarried couples. This document outlines how you’ll handle shared property, expenses, and financial contributions both during your relationship and if it ends. It can help prevent disputes and make sure each partner’s contributions are respected and accounted for. Don’t Forget Emotional and Practical Planning Estate planning for unmarried couples isn’t just about protecting assets; it’s about protecting the person you’ve chosen as family. You have the power to decide if your partner will deal with chaos, conflict, uncertainty and unnecessary expenses after you die, or if your partner will know exactly what to do, when, and how, with the right support to make it as easy as possible. The difference depends on whether you’ve planned for the emotional and practical aspects of death, in addition to the legal tools. When you work with our office at Kaplan Estate Law LLC, I’ll help you not only get the right legal tools in place, but we’ll also cover the emotional and practical aspects of planning, such as: Creating a comprehensive asset inventory and keeping it updated over time.  Without a complete inventory, even the best legal document ever written can fail if your partner can’t locate everything you own.  Recording a Life & Legacy Interview  so you can pass on your stories, values, and love. Your partner will cherish this forever and have guidance directly from you if they’re ever forced to navigate difficult decisions in your absence. Creating open communication among your loved ones. I will support you to have difficult conversations with everyone you love about your wishes for medical care, funeral plans, and what you’d want done with your home and possessions. These conversations relieve your partner from the burden of guessing and ensure they can act with confidence when the time comes, rather than fighting your family in court. Take the Next Step to Protect the Life You’ve Built If you and your partner aren’t legally married, estate planning isn’t just important - it’s essential. Without it, the person you love most could lose everything you’ve worked for together. But with the right guidance, you can make sure your wishes are honored, your partner is cared for, and your love story is legally protected. When you work with me, I’ll help you: Clarify what would happen if either of you became incapacitated or died today. Create a clear plan that gives each of you legal authority and protection. Build an updated inventory of assets so nothing gets overlooked. Schedule ongoing reviews, so your plan evolves as your life and relationship change. Most importantly, your partner will know exactly what to do and who to call when something happens—because I’ll be there to guide them. Schedule your 15-minute initial consult today and find out how I can help you protect your partner, your home, and the life you’ve built together.

October 20–26, 2025, is Estate Planning Awareness Week - a national observance created to encourage Americans to think about what will happen to their loved ones and their assets after they die. For many people, the term estate planning brings to mind stacks of legal documents, a will, a trust, a healthcare directive, or powers of attorney. But estate planning isn’t just about creating documents. It’s about making sure the people you love are protected and supported when they need it most. It's ultimately about love, protection, and peace of mind.  Yet despite that truth, most people are unprepared. A survey from 2024  showed that only 32% of Americans have a will, a 6% decline from the previous year. That means most families are at risk of court involvement, conflict, and unnecessary costs at the very moment they are grieving. In this article, you’ll learn why estate planning is one of the most important steps you can take for everyone you love. You’ll discover what happens when families don’t plan, how to create a plan that works, and why now is the perfect time to put your plan in place. What Most People Miss: Estate Planning Is About People, Not Paperwork The most common misconception we hear is that drafting a set of documents and signing them is how to create an estate plan. This misconception exists because it’s the traditional way estate planning has been done, and most people don’t know how insufficient documents alone are until they’re left dealing with a big legal and financial mess after a loved one has died. But you can avoid leaving a mess for those you love if you create a well-designed plan that goes beyond the paperwork. A well-designed, complete plan makes life easier for all the people you love. It ensures they have the clarity, authority, and support they’ll need when something happens to you. Imagine your loved ones trying to manage your affairs without knowing where your accounts are, how your bills get paid, or who should make medical decisions for you if you can’t speak for yourself. Without clarity and support, they could face months of confusion, stress, and court involvement. But with a proper plan in place, they’ll know exactly what to do and whom to turn to so they can focus on what really matters: caring for each other. A well-designed estate plan doesn’t just pass on your assets. It passes on your values, your guidance, and your love. You will record the stories you want remembered, the traditions you hope will continue, and the lessons you’ve learned that you want your loved ones to carry forward. These are the true treasures your loved ones will cherish most. When you see planning this way, it becomes clear that it’s not something you do for yourself. It’s something you do for them.  As important as it is to understand what estate planning truly represents, it’s equally important to recognize the consequences of neglecting it. What Happens When You Don’t Plan Another misconception we hear is that people think they don’t have enough assets to warrant planning. This also isn’t true. Since estate planning is ultimately about people, you need a plan if you have anyone in your life whom you love. No matter the size of someone’s estate, every lawyer who helps families after a death has seen it: the heartbreak that happens when planning was ignored, outdated, or incomplete.  People who never created a plan, or have an incomplete or failed plan, create a situation where their loved ones face long delays, expense, and family strife. Assets are frozen. Bills go unpaid. Grieving children are left to guess at their parents’ wishes, and often disagree about what those wishes were. Even simple omissions can lead to lost property, family disputes, or thousands of dollars in unnecessary legal fees. And then there’s another danger: the illusion of planning. Many people think they’ve completed their estate plan because they used an online form or had a lawyer prepare documents years ago. But if those documents don’t reflect current laws, assets, or relationships, they can fail completely when they’re needed most. And when plans fail, the result isn’t just financial, it’s emotional. Loved ones who were once close may end up with irretrievably broken relationships. Precious time and energy are spent untangling confusion instead of being spent together in comfort and healing. That’s why Estate Planning Awareness Week exists - to remind us that estate planning isn’t a one-time task, but an ongoing act of care. The good news is that with the right guidance, your plan can protect your loved ones for life. How to Create a Plan That Truly Works Our Life & Legacy Planning process results in a well-designed, well-thought-out plan that works when you and your loved ones need it. It’s not documents-focused, it’s people-focused. Life & Legacy Planning is a comprehensive process designed to protect both your loved ones’ future and their peace of mind. When you work with us, your plan begins with a Life & Legacy Planning Session, a working meeting that helps you understand exactly what would happen to your family and each of your particular assets if something happened to you now. During your session, you’ll gain clarity about your current situation and make informed choices about what’s truly best for the people you love. We’ll review your goals, relationships, assets, and values, then create a plan that ensures everything and everyone you care about will be protected exactly the way you intend. Importantly, a Life & Legacy Plan is a living system, not a static set of papers. It includes an up-to-date inventory of your assets, clear instructions for your loved ones, and a built-in process for regular reviews as your life, the law, and your assets change. It’s a relationship-based approach that ensures your plan stays current and that your loved ones always have us as someone to turn to for help when they need it most. By combining proactive legal planning with ongoing support, we help you avoid the very pitfalls that leave most families struggling after a loved one’s death. The result is confidence, not just that your documents are complete, but that everyone you love will be guided by someone who knows you, your wishes, and your story. When you understand how powerful real planning can be, the next step becomes clear: act before it’s too late. Your Next Step Happens Now This Estate Planning Awareness Week, take the step that too many people put off entirely, or put off until it’s too late. If you already have a plan, let’s make sure it’s up to date and truly reflects your life today. If you don’t, now is the perfect time to begin. At Kaplan Estate Law LLC, we can help you create a Life & Legacy Plan that organizes your finances, protects your loved ones, and ensures your plan works exactly as you intend. You’ll walk away knowing your loved ones will have a trusted advisor to turn to when you no longer can. Life & Legacy Planning gives you peace of mind now, and gives your loved ones peace of mind for the future. Schedule your complimentary 15-minute discovery call today to get started now.

As we prepare for National Estate Planning Awareness Week, now is a great time to shed light on this often misunderstood and frequently avoided topic. You might think estate planning is only for the wealthy or too complicated and expensive. These are just a few myths surrounding estate planning that I hear often. In reality, estate planning is critical for everyone, including you, regardless of age or financial status.  Many people don’t really understand what estate planning is - even attorneys sometimes don’t really understand it. So, I’ll take this opportunity to set the record straight and debunk some common myths, then explore why you need an estate plan, and how to get the right one, at the right price. Myth 1: Estate Planning is Only for the Wealthy One of the most persistent myths about estate planning is that it's only necessary if you have significant wealth or valuable assets. This couldn't be further from the truth. Estate planning isn't about the size of your estate; it's about making sure that when something happens to you - as it will - the people you love aren’t left with a big mess to deal with. Consider this: Do you have a bank account? A car? Personal belongings with sentimental value? A life insurance policy? If you answered yes to any of these, you have an estate. But even more importantly, do you have people you care about? Family members who depend on you? Or people you love who are going to be stuck dealing with your mess, if you don’t take care of these things while you can. If so, you need an estate plan. Estate planning isn't just about distributing assets. It's about making important decisions that will affect your loved ones. For instance: Who will take care of your minor children if something happens to you? And, how will they take care of them?  Who will make medical decisions on your behalf if you're incapacitated? And, how will they make those decisions? Who will manage your digital assets, like email, social media accounts or cryptocurrency? Who will make sure your bills get paid? These questions apply to everyone, regardless of their net worth. By creating an estate plan, you're not flaunting wealth; you're taking responsibility for your life and the people you care about. After all, someone  will have to deal with these things. It’s unavoidable. You can do it now and make it easy on your loved ones (and have more control over outcomes), or you can procrastinate it or avoid it altogether, and leave the people you love with a complicated and expensive mess to clean up, if you become incapacitated or after you die. Myth 2: Estate Planning is Complicated and Expensive Another common misconception is that estate planning is an overly complex and costly process. While it's true that estate planning involves legal documents and careful consideration, it doesn't have to be overwhelming or break the bank. In fact, we promise to make it as easy as possible for you, at the right budget based on your family dynamics, assets, and needs.  The complexity and cost of your estate plan will depend on your specific situation and goals. Our Life & Legacy Planning process is specifically designed to start with getting you educated and organized, so we can support you to choose the right plan for you and your loved ones.  You can either start with one of our educational presentations or a 15-minute call with our office. From there, we guide you through a Planning Session that will have you relieved at how educated you are. One of the main purposes of the Planning Session is to look at the cost of the “state’s plan” or your current plan (if you created a will or a trust in the past), and to ensure you are 100% clear about what would happen, if you become incapacitated or when you die. And, then, we look at exactly what you would want, and the cost to create a plan that meets your wishes. You are then able to make an informed, educated decision about what you want to do for yourself, and the people you love. When you consider the peace of mind and potential savings in time, stress, and money for your loved ones down the line, Life & Legacy Planning is often the best way to save your loved ones time and money, while also creating optimal value and use of your resources, during your own lifetime. Think of it as insurance for your legacy – a small cost now can save your loved ones significant trouble and expense later. Myth 3: I'm Too Young to Need an Estate Plan You might think estate planning is something you can put off until you're older, but this is a dangerous assumption. Life is unpredictable, and having an estate plan in place is crucial regardless of your age. If you're a young adult, you might not have accumulated much wealth yet, but you still have important decisions to make. For instance: Who will manage your social media accounts if something happens to you? Who will take care of your pets? If you have a small business or side hustle, what will happen to it? Who will be responsible for paying off your student loans or other debts? Moreover, estate planning becomes even more critical if you're a young parent. Your estate plan can designate guardians for your children and set up trusts to manage any assets they might inherit. Without these provisions, the court may have to decide who raises your children, leading to family disputes and potentially placing your children with someone you wouldn't have chosen. Even if you're single with no dependents, an estate plan is critical, maybe even more so because it’s up to you to determine who will care for you, if you cannot care for yourself. You really don’t want to leave that to a judge to decide. Your plan will ensure your wishes are respected if you become incapacitated, designate who will make medical decisions for you, and specify how you want your assets distributed. This can prevent potential conflicts among family members and ensure your hard-earned assets go to the people or causes you care about most. Remember, estate planning isn't about planning for your death; it's about planning for life, and the uncertainties sure to come. It's about taking control of your future and caring for the people and things you love, no matter your age. Myth 4: Once I Create an Estate Plan, I'm Done Another common misconception is that estate planning is a one-time event. In reality, your estate plan should evolve as your life changes. Major life events that might necessitate updates to your estate plan include: Marriage or divorce Birth or adoption of children Death of a beneficiary or executor Significant changes in your financial situation Purchase of a home or other major asset Starting a business Moving to a different state Even if you haven't experienced any major life changes, it's important to review your estate plan at least every three years, though we recommend you review your assets and how they are titled, annually. Laws change, and what was optimal a few years ago might not be the best strategy now. For example, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 significantly increased the federal estate tax exemption. If your estate plan was created before this change, it might need adjusting to take advantage of the new tax laws. Regular reviews also give you a chance to reconsider your choices. Maybe the person you initially chose as your children's guardian is no longer the best fit. Or perhaps your financial situation has improved, and you'd like to include charitable giving in your estate plan. Keeping your estate plan up-to-date ensures it continues to reflect your wishes and provides the best possible protection for your loved ones. Think of it as a living document that grows and changes with you, rather than a static set of instructions. It’s so important that we include regular reviews at least every three years in all our Life & Legacy Plans, and have systems to keep your plan up to date.  It's time to move past these myths and recognize the true value of estate planning. It's not a luxury for the wealthy, a complex process beyond your reach, or something you can put off until later in life. It's a fundamental aspect of responsible financial planning that everyone should consider. By creating and maintaining an estate plan, you're taking control of your legacy, ensuring your wishes are respected, and providing invaluable peace of mind for yourself and your loved ones. Don't let misconceptions hold you back – consult with a qualified estate planning attorney today and take the first step towards securing your future. How We Help You Take Action Today Don't let common estate planning myths prevent you from securing your future. At Kaplan Estate Law LLC, we help you create a comprehensive Life & Legacy Plan that goes beyond basic estate planning. We'll outline strategies for your assets, prepare for potential incapacity, and ensure your family is cared for, even if the unexpected happens. Our approach includes regular reviews to keep your plan current with life changes, and we even help capture family memories and traditions. With our guidance, you can rest easy knowing your wishes will be honored, your loved ones cared for, and your property protected.  Take the first step towards peace of mind - click here to schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation and learn how we can help you create your personalized Life & Legacy Plan, or e-mail us with questions!

As a parent, your top priority is the well-being and future of your children. You plan for their education, health, and happiness, and often this planning includes the tradition of choosing godparents to guide and mentor your children if something happens to you. While selecting godparents is a meaningful tradition in many cultures, it's important to understand that naming a godparent is not the same thing as naming a legal guardian for your children. To put it bluntly, even if you have named godparents, if something happens to you, your children could end up in the care of strangers, child protective services or in the long-term care of someone you would never want raising your children. In this blog, we’ll explain the roles of a godparent and legal guardian and how to ensure your kids are always cared for by the people you choose - no matter what. Godparents A godparent is traditionally someone you name to watch over your child and help them live according to your morals and values. Godparents are meant to be mentors and role models, guiding your child in matters of faith, morality, and character. The role of a godparent is deeply rooted in religious and cultural traditions, and they often participate in religious ceremonies such as baptisms or confirmations. Whether your family is religious or not, godparents may also play a supportive role in your child's life by offering emotional support, advice, and friendship. They can be someone your child can turn to for guidance and a listening ear, but their responsibilities are largely informal and non-legal. Legal Guardians In contrast, naming a legal guardian for your child is a formal, legal process. A legal guardian is someone who has the legal authority to make decisions on behalf of your child, especially if you, as the parent, are unable to do so. This could occur due to your passing, incapacity, or any situation in which you cannot provide care or make important legal, financial, healthcare or education decisions for your child. The responsibilities of a legal guardian encompass every area of your child's life that you would normally manage as a parent. This includes everything from feeding and clothing your child to deciding where they go to school, attending parent-teacher meetings and which extracurricular activities they participate in. Legal guardianship also includes the decisions about where your child lives and what medical treatment they should or should not receive. A legal guardian may also help manage your child's financial assets and resources, ensuring their financial well-being. In some cases, if you’ve planned ahead, you may choose to have a different person act as a financial Trustee of the assets you leave for your child, and your chosen Trustee will work alongside the legal guardian to ensure your child is financially supported. In some cases, your guardian and Trustee may be the same person. This is a decision we can help you make during a Life & Legacy Planning Session, based on the specifics of your family dynamics. Why Naming Godparents Isn’t Enough While godparents may be deeply caring and involved in your child's life, they have no legal authority to make decisions for your child unless they are officially appointed as a legal guardian by the court. That means that until that happens, (if it happens) your child’s godparents are not legally able to make any decisions for your children, including their basic care needs, education, and medical care. If you become incapacitated or die, and have not legally nominated a guardian (and, ideally, more than one), there could be a complex and expensive custody dispute among your family members. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles may assume you would want your children to live under their care rather than the people you named as godparents. This is especially likely if the people you’ve named as godparents are not related to you by blood or marriage. Without a legal guardian designation in writing and signed with the formalities of a Will in your estate plan, godparents may find themselves in an expensive court battle over custody rights, and they may not even be named as the legal guardians of your children at all. In fact, the court could name someone you would never want raising your kids as their legal guardian. Life-long Legal Protection for Kids While godparents hold a significant place in your child's life as mentors and role models, they don’t possess the legal authority to make critical decisions for your child or provide for your child's physical and financial well-being on their own. Instead, consider combining the roles of godparents and legal guardians into one. If you’ve already chosen people you trust to serve as lifelong role models and spiritual guardians for your children as their godparents, why not give those people the legal authority to truly perform those duties if something happens to you? If you aren’t sure who the best guardian or godparent is for your children, we can help. At Kaplan Estate Law, we’ll walk you through a heart-centered process for choosing guardians who genuinely care for your child's well-being and share your values. Plus, we’ll ensure they have the financial and legal tools needed to give your child the best life possible if you can’t be there. The best way to keep your children safe and secure is to create a comprehensive Kids Protection Plan that keeps your children in the care of the people you choose in any situation, out of the care of anyone you wouldn’t want, ensures your children can receive prompt medical care, and that the authorities know who to contact in an emergency so your children are never placed in protective custody - even for a minute. To learn more and to get started today, schedule a complimentary call with my office or e-mail me at lauren@kaplanestatelaw.com.

If you’re tempted to use a DIY estate planning service or have already created a plan you aren’t 100% confident in, be sure to read how these three simple mistakes can derail your estate plan and leave your family with an expensive mess. While it might seem simple enough to put together a trust online, it can be very difficult to create an estate plan that works without the proper training and experience. What might seem like minor details to the inexperienced eye can often have major effects on your plan’s final outcome. More often than not, clients who meet with us to review a DIY plan find out that instead of saving money on their estate plan, they’ve actually cost themselves much more by buying a plan that has mistakes . And if these mistakes aren’t caught by you while you’re alive and well, your loved ones will be the ones paying the price to resolve them after you’re gone. Here are the three biggest mistakes I see when reviewing DIY and low-cost estate plans: Leaving Assets Outright to Loved Ones One of the simplest mistakes you can make in estate planning is distributing your assets directly to your beneficiaries upon your death. This is a bad idea for several reasons: The assets have no protection from your beneficiaries’ creditors once they leave your estate The money can be squandered and used however the beneficiary wants If the beneficiary is a minor, a court will decide who manages the assets and how they’ll be used Instead of gifting your assets directly to your beneficiaries, distribute your assets into a trust for the beneficiaries' benefit. When creating a trust, you can choose who will manage your assets for your beneficiaries while also sheltering those assets from your beneficiaries’ creditors or their own poor money-management skills. Setting up a trust to hold your assets is especially important if you have minor children. Minors cannot own money on their own, which means they can’t receive any assets from you directly on your death. Instead, a court will need to appoint a trustee or guardian to manage the assets you leave for your children. There’s a high chance that the person the court appoints will not be the person you would have chosen yourself. And if the court appoints a professional trustee, your assets will be reduced by expensive trust administration fees. A court-appointed trustee will distribute the assets to your children outright when they reach the age of 18, but this only puts the assets at risk. Few young adults have the maturity or knowledge to manage a large sum of money responsibly so that it can grow and support them over time. Even if your adult child is responsible or has guidance from someone you trust, those assets are still susceptible to any lawsuits, divorces, and unforeseen financial troubles your child may experience in the future. Instead of leaving assets outright to a minor or young adult, leaving your assets in a trust, established for the child’s benefit, allows you to choose the person who will manage the assets you leave for them, helps the assets grow through careful financial management, and protects the assets from your child’s lack of experience and future risk. Not Creating a Lifetime Asset Protection Trust Creating a trust to hold your assets can provide years of asset protection for your loved ones, but that protection only exists so long as the assets are held in the name of the trust. The second big mistake I see are trusts that direct the assets to be taken out of the trust’s protection and given to your child or beneficiary at a specific age. You might not see the problem with this scenario at first, but even if your child or beneficiary is mature enough to manage a sum of money, doing this still leaves those assets susceptible to future legal and financial risks. Instead, everyone should consider creating a Lifetime Asset Protection Trust to hold their beneficiaries’ assets indefinitely. This gives the assets lifelong protection while still providing financial support to your beneficiaries. Even if you are leaving behind a small number of assets, protecting those assets and helping them grow can make a huge difference in the future well-being of your loved ones. Forgetting to Update Beneficiary Designations This final mistake is so simple yet so easily forgotten when creating a DIY plan or using an inexperienced estate planner: forgetting to update your insurance policies and retirement beneficiary designations so they match your estate plan. While your will and trust are important parts of your estate plan, it’s vital to update your insurance policies and retirement accounts to match your estate plan pay out to your trust instead of directly to your beneficiaries, after discussing your options with your attorney. Leaving the names of your beneficiaries on your insurance and retirement accounts instead of the name of your trust ensures the largest assets you own won’t be a part of the plan you just created. Instead, the assets will be distributed directly to the beneficiaries listed on the account, to do with however they want, even if you had other plans for protecting the funds under your trust. We’ve even seen cases where the beneficiaries named on a life insurance or retirement account are so outdated that the person named on the account isn’t even a part of the client’s life anymore! Estate Planning That Works In order to make sure your estate plan truly works the way you intend it to, it’s essential that all of your assets are reviewed and accounted for to make sure that any accounts you have reflect the name of your trust or other estate plan method. That’s why at Kaplan Estate Law LLC, we always create an inventory of your assets and follow up with you to make sure your assets are updated into the name of your trust. We can even update your assets for you, so you can rest assured that every piece of your plan works together. If you're thinking about using a DIY estate planning service or had an estate plan created by an attorney in a different practice area, it's crucial to check your plan for these three simple but major mistakes. Otherwise, your estate plan might end up causing more problems than it solves, leaving your family in court and conflict. During a Life & Legacy Planning Session , we offer to review your current estate plan. During this session, you'll have the opportunity to discuss your concerns, learn how your current plan will (or won’t) work for you, and if you don’t feel confident in your current estate plan, we’ll create a new comprehensive plan for you that will provide the protection and support your family needs for years to come. Don’t let a simple estate planning mistake derail your plans for your family. Click here to schedule your complimentary Initial Consult. Your loved ones will thank you for it!

Unless you’ve created an estate plan that works to keep your family out of court, when you die (or become incapacitated) many of your assets must go through probate before those assets can be distributed to your heirs. Like most court proceedings, probate can be time-consuming, costly, and open to the public, and because of this, avoiding probate—and keeping your family out of court—is often a central goal of estate planning. To spare your loved one’s the time, cost, and stress inherent to probate, last week in part one of this series, we explained how the probate process works and what it would entail for your loved ones. Here in part two, we’ll discuss the major drawbacks of probate for your family, and outline the different ways you can help them avoid probate with wise planning. WHAT’S AT STAKE FOR YOUR FAMILY Probate court proceedings can take months, and sometimes even years, to complete. In the immediate aftermath of your death, that’s the last thing you likely want your loved ones to have to endure. And the cost of their time and emotional strain are just the start of the potentially devastating consequences your family could face if you don’t plan ahead. Without easy and immediate access to your assets, your family could face serious financial hardship at a time when they need the most support. Not only that, but to help them navigate the legal proceedings, your loved ones will almost certainly need to hire a lawyer, which can result in hefty attorney’s fees and the real risk of them hiring a lawyer who is uncommunicative, which only creates more stress for them. All of that is on top of the court costs, executor’s compensation, and all of the various other administrative expenses related to probate. By the time all of those costs have been paid, your estate could be totally wiped out, or at the very least, seriously depleted. Another drawback of probate is the fact that it’s a public process. Whether you have a will or not, all of the proceedings that take place during probate become part of the public record. This means that anyone who’s interested can learn about the contents of your estate, who your beneficiaries are, and what they will inherit, which can set them up as potential targets for scammers and frauds. Probate also has the potential to create conflict among your loved ones. This is particularly true if you have disinherited someone or plan to leave significantly more money to one relative than the others, in which case, a family member may contest your will. And even if those contests don’t succeed, such court fights will only increase the time, expense, and strife your family has to endure. HOW TO AVOID PROBATE Before we discuss the more advanced ways you can use estate planning to allow your loved ones to avoid probate, it’s important to point out that not all of your assets will have to go through the probate process—and that’s true even if you don’t have any estate plan at all. Assets That Do Not Require Probate Certain assets, such as those with beneficiary designations like 401(k)s, IRAs, and the proceeds from life insurance policies, will pass directly to the individuals or organizations you designated as your beneficiary, without the need for any additional planning. The following are some of the most common assets that use beneficiary designations and therefore, bypass probate: Retirement accounts, IRAs, 401(k)s, and pensions Life insurance or annuity proceeds Payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts Transfer-on-death (TOD) property, such as bonds, stocks, vehicles, and real estate Outside of assets with beneficiary designations, other assets that do not go through probate include assets with a right of survivorship, such as property held in joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety, and community property with the right of survivorship. These assets automatically pass to the surviving co-owner(s) when you die, without the need for probate. However, it’s critical to note here that if you name your “estate'' as the beneficiary of any of these assets, those assets will go through probate before being distributed. The same goes if you overlook a beneficiary designation, or if you die at the same time as a joint property owner—each of those assets will also go through probate, even though they have beneficiary designations. In addition, we generally recommend that you do not rely on beneficiary designations to handle the distribution of your assets. These designations give you little to no control over how your assets are distributed, and they can result in negative outcomes you did not intend, especially if you have a blended family with children from a prior marriage or if you have no children at all. Although there are several different types of assets that automatically bypass probate, the majority of your assets will require slightly more advanced levels of planning to ensure your loved ones can immediately access them, without the need for any court proceedings in the event something happens to you. The primary estate planning tool for this purpose are trusts. AVOIDING PROBATE WITH A REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST Trusts are a popular estate planning tool for avoiding probate. Although there are a variety of different types of trust, the most commonly used trust for probate avoidance is a revocable living trust, also called a “living trust.” A trust is basically a legal agreement between the “grantor” (the person who puts assets into the trust) and the “trustee” (the person who agrees to manage those assets) to hold title to assets for the benefit of the “beneficiary.” With a revocable living trust, this agreement is typically made between you as the grantor and you as the trustee for the benefit of you as the beneficiary. You act as your own trustee during your lifetime, and then you name someone as a “successor trustee” to take over management of the trust when you die or in the event of your incapacity. It might seem odd to make an agreement with yourself to hold title to assets for yourself in order to benefit yourself. Yet by doing so, you remove those assets from the court’s jurisdiction in the event of your incapacity or when you die. Instead, those assets transfer to your successor trustee, without any court intervention required. At that point, your successor trustee is responsible for managing the trust assets and eventually distributing them to your beneficiaries, according to the terms you spell out in the trust agreement. This is how a trust avoids probate, saving your family significant time, money, and headache. The Key Benefits of a Living Trust Unlike a will, if your trust is properly set up and maintained, your loved ones won’t have to go to court to inherit your assets. Instead, your successor trustee can immediately transfer the assets held by the trust to your loved ones upon your death or in the event of your incapacity. And since you can include specific instructions in a trust’s terms for how and when the assets held by the trust are distributed to a beneficiary, a trust can offer greater control over how your assets are distributed compared to a will. For example, you could stipulate that the assets can only be distributed upon certain life events, such as the completion of college or marriage, or when the beneficiary reaches a certain age. In this way, you can help prevent your beneficiaries from blowing through their inheritance and offer incentives for them to demonstrate responsible behavior. And as long as the assets are held in trust, they’re protected from the beneficiaries’ creditors, lawsuits, and divorce—which is something else wills don’t provide. Finally, trusts remain private and are not part of the public record. So, with a properly funded trust, the entire process of transferring ownership of your assets can happen in the privacy of our office, not a courtroom, and on your family’s time. Transferring Assets into a Living Trust For a trust to function properly, it’s not enough to simply list the assets you want the trust to cover. When you create your trust, you must also transfer the legal title of any assets you want to be held by the trust from your name into the name of the trust. Retitling assets in this way is known as “funding” a trust. Funding your trust properly is extremely important, because if any assets are not properly funded to the trust, the trust won’t work, and your family will have to go to court in order to take ownership of that property, even if you have a trust. In light of this, it’s critical to work with us to ensure your trust works as intended. While many lawyers will create a trust for you, few will ensure your assets are properly inventoried and funded into your trust, and then ensure the inventory of your assets is kept up-to-date as your life and assets change over time. We will not only make sure all of your assets are properly titled when you initially create your trust, but we will also ensure that any new assets you acquire over the course of your life are inventoried and properly funded to your trust. This will keep your assets from being lost, as well as prevent your family from being inadvertently forced into court because your plan was never fully completed. LIVING TRUSTS, TAXES, CREDITORS, & LAWSUITS When you create a revocable living trust, you are free to change the trust’s terms or even completely terminate the trust at any point during your lifetime. Because you retain control over the assets held by a living trust during your lifetime, those assets are still considered part of your estate for estate tax purposes. Similarly, assets held in a living trust are not protected from your creditors or lawsuits during your lifetime. This is an important and often misunderstood point. Again, a revocable living trust does not protect your assets from creditors or lawsuits, and it has no impact on your income taxes. However, as mentioned earlier, as long as the assets are held by a living trust or a Lifetime Asset Protection Trust, those assets can be protected from your beneficiaries’ creditors, lawsuits, and even divorce settlements. Be sure to ask us about the different trust-based estate planning options we offer to find one that’s best suited for your particular situation. The primary benefit of a living trust is to pass your assets to your loved ones without any need for court or government intervention, and to ensure your assets pass in the way you want to the people you want. LIFE & LEGACY PLANNING: DO RIGHT BY THOSE YOU LOVE MOST Although a living trust can be an ideal way to pass your wealth and assets to your loved ones, each family’s circumstances are different. This is why we do not create any documents until we know what you actually need and what will be the most affordable solution for you and your family—both now and in the future—based on your family dynamics, assets, and desires. The best way for you to determine which estate planning strategies are best suited for your situation is to meet with us for a Life & Legacy Planning Session . During this process, we’ll take you through an analysis of your assets, what’s most important to you, and what will happen to your loved ones when you die or if you become incapacitated. Get started today by scheduling a complimentary initial consult .

Unless you’ve created a proper estate plan, when you die many of your assets must first pass through the court process known as probate before those assets can be distributed to your heirs. Like most court proceedings, probate can be time-consuming, costly, and open to the public, and because of this, avoiding probate—and keeping your family out of court—is a central goal of most estate plans. During probate, the court supervises a number of different legal actions, all of which are aimed at finalizing your affairs and settling your estate. Although we’ll discuss them more in-depth below, probate typically consists of the following processes: Determining the validity of your will (if you have one). Appointing an executor or administrator to manage the probate process and settle your estate. Locating and valuing all of your assets. Notifying & paying your creditors. Filing & paying your taxes. Distributing your assets to the appropriate beneficiaries. In most cases, going through all of these steps is a real pain for the people you love. It’s expensive, can take a long time, and be highly inconvenient, and sometimes, even downright messy. By implementing the right estate planning strategies, however, you can help your loved ones avoid probate all together—or at least make the process extremely simple for them. To spare your family from the time, cost, and stress inherent to probate, here in this two-part series, we’ll first explain how the probate process works and what it would entail for your loved ones, and then we’ll outline the different ways you can avoid probate with wise planning. When Probate is Required As mentioned previously, if you fail to put in place a proper estate plan, your assets must go through probate before they can be distributed to your heirs. In general, this includes those individuals who have no estate plan at all, those whose estate plan consists of a will alone, and those who have a will that’s deemed invalid by the court. It’s important to point out that even if you have a will in place, your loved ones will still be required to go through probate upon your death. Therefore, if you want to keep your family out of court and out of conflict when you die, you cannot rely solely on a will, and you’ll need to put in place additional estate planning vehicles, which we will cover in further detail later. If you die without a will, it’s known as dying intestate, and in such cases, probate is still required to pay your debts and distribute your assets. However, since you haven’t expressed how you wish your estate to be divided among your heirs, your assets will be distributed to your closest living relatives based on our state’s intestate succession laws. These laws typically give priority to spouses, children, and parents, followed by siblings and grandparents, and then more distant relatives. If no living heirs can be found, then your assets go to the state. Some states allow estates with a relatively low value to bypass probate and use an abbreviated process to settle the estate. Illinois law allows estates with a total value of less than $100,000 to skip probate (although this number may be increasing to $150,000). In those cases, beneficiaries can claim the estate’s assets using simpler legal actions, such as by filing an affidavit or other form. Additionally, when an individual’s debts exceed the value of their assets, or a person has no assets at all, probate is often not initiated, and the estate is settled using alternative legal processes. How Probate Works How probate plays out is largely determined by whether or not you had a valid will in place at the time of death. However, even in cases where no will exists, or the will is deemed invalid, the probate process is quite similar. Indeed, once the court appoints someone to oversee the probate process on your behalf, the process unfolds in a nearly identical manner, regardless if you had a will or not. 01 | AUTHENTICATING THE VALIDITY OF YOUR WILL: Following your death, your executor is responsible for filing your will and a Petition with the court, and this initiates the probate process. From there, the court must authenticate your will to ensure it was properly created and executed in accordance with state law, and this usually involves a court hearing. Notice of the hearing must be given to all of the beneficiaries named in your will, along with all potential heirs who would stand to inherit under state law in the absence of a will. This hearing gives these individuals the opportunity to contest the validity of your will in order to prevent the document from being admitted to probate. For example, someone might contest your will on the grounds that it was improperly executed (signed, witnessed, and/or notarized) as required by state law, or someone might claim that you were unduly influenced or coerced to change your will. If such a contest is successful, the court declares your will invalid, which effectively means the document never existed in the first place. 02 | APPOINTING THE EXECUTOR OR ADMINISTRATOR: If you created a will, the court must formally appoint the person you named in your will as your executor before they can legally act on your behalf. If you died without a will, the court will appoint someone—typically your closest living relative—to serve in this role, known as your personal representative or administrator. In some cases, the court might require your executor to post a bond before they can serve. The bond functions as an insurance policy to reimburse the estate in the event the executor makes a serious error during probate that financially damages the estate. 03 | LOCATING & VALUING YOUR ASSETS: Once probate begins, the executor must identify, locate, and take possession of all of your assets, so they can be appraised to determine the total value of your estate. This includes not only those assets listed in your will and other estate planning documents, but also those you may have not included in your estate plan. This is why keeping a regularly updated inventory of your assets is so important. Any assets the executor is unable to locate will end up in our state’s Department of Unclaimed Property. Across the U.S., there is more than $58 billion (yes, that’s billion with a ‘b’) of assets stuck in state Departments of Unclaimed Property. Fortunately, this is easy to prevent when you work with us. We will not only help you create a comprehensive asset inventory, we will make sure this inventory stays updated throughout your lifetime In the case of real estate, although the executor is not expected to actually move into your home or other residence, he or she is required to ensure that your mortgage, homeowners insurance, and property taxes are paid while probate is ongoing. These and all other debts can be paid from your estate. Once all of your assets have been located, the executor must determine their value, which is typically done using financial statements and/or appraisals. From there, the combined value of all of your assets is used to estimate the total value of your estate. 04 | NOTIFYING & PAYING YOUR CREDITORS: To ensure all of your outstanding debts are paid before your assets are distributed, the executor must notify all of your creditors of your death. In most states, any unknown creditors can be notified by publishing a death notice with your local newspaper. Creditors typically have a limited period of time—six months in Illinois—after being notified to make claims against your estate. The executor can challenge any creditor claims he or she considers invalid, and in turn, the creditor can petition the court to rule on whether the claim must be paid. From there, valid creditor claims are then paid. The executor will use your estate funds to pay all of your final bills, including any outstanding medical and funeral expenses. 05 | FILING & PAYING YOUR TAXES: In addition to paying all of your outstanding private debts, the executor is also responsible for filing and paying any outstanding taxes you owe to the government at the time of death. This includes personal income and capital-gains taxes, as well as state and federal estate taxes, if your estate is valuable enough to qualify. In Illinois, the estate tax exemption is currently set at $4 million. For those who exceed that threshold, there are several strategies you can use to reduce the size of your estate to avoid these taxes, if you plan ahead of time. Any taxes due are paid from estate funds. In some cases, this may require liquidating assets to raise the needed cash. At Kaplan Estate Law LLC, we will not only support you during your lifetime to implement tax-saving strategies to minimize your tax bill, but we will also work with your loved ones following your death in the same capacity to ensure the wealth and legacy you’ve built provides the maximum benefit to those you leave behind. 06 | DISTRIBUTION OF YOUR REMAINING ASSETS: Once the court confirms all of your debts and taxes have been paid—which typically requires the executor to file an accounting of all transactions he or she engaged in during the probate process—the executor can petition the court for authorization to distribute the remaining assets in your estate to the beneficiaries named in your will, or according to state intestate succession laws, if you didn’t have a will. Once all assets have been distributed, the executor must file a petition with the court to close probate. If all creditors and taxes have been paid, your assets have been distributed, and there are no other outstanding issues to be addressed, the court will issue an order formally closing the estate and terminating the executor’s appointment. Keep Your Family Out of Court and Out of Conflict At Kaplan Estate Law, one of our primary goals when creating your estate plan is to keep your family out of court and out of conflict no matter what happens to you. Yet, as you can see, if your family has to go through probate, your estate plan falls woefully short of that goal, leaving those you love most stuck in an unnecessary, expensive, time-consuming, and public court process. Fortunately, it’s easy for you to spare your family the burden of probate with proactive planning. Next week, we’ll look at the ways you can do just that in the second part of this series. Until then, if you haven’t put an estate plan in place or have one that would force your family to go through probate, contact us to schedule an initial consult. Next week, in part two, we’ll discuss the estate planning strategies that you can use to avoid the need for your loved ones to go through probate.

As a parent, you have probably thought about the importance of naming permanent legal guardians for your child in case something happens to you, and maybe you have already done it. If you haven’t yet, take this as the sign that now’s the time to do it, in case the unthinkable happens to you. But in some cases, naming permanent legal guardians for your child may not be enough to guarantee your kids will always be cared for in the way you want by the people you want. And, there may even be a risk of your kids being taken into the care of strangers or someone you would never want. Read on to find out if that’s the case for your family, and if it is, contact us ASAP to get your Kids Protection Plan in place. You Leave Your Kids With Non-Related Caregivers If you ever leave your minor kids with a caregiver who isn’t a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or other family member that the authorities would naturally leave your kids with if something happens to you, this is what could happen. Your kids are home with the babysitter. You don’t make it home, and the authorities are called. The authorities show up at your house, and what would they do? Would they leave your children at home with the person taking care of them while they attempt to find your Will or legal guardian nomination? Would they even be able to find your legal documents? Would your legal documents name someone who would be immediately available to come to stay with your children, and would the authorities leave your children with those people without a court order? If not, you need a Kids Protection Plan to fill in the gap. Permanent guardian nominations only take effect upon your passing and are made official through the court system. This means that they do not give any legal authority to your chosen guardians in an emergency or if you become incapacitated. Because of this, law enforcement could place your child into protective custody with social services in the event of your sudden absence or incapacity due to an illness or injury. To minimize the chances that would happen, we can name legal guardians for the short-term, and give those named guardians the legal documentation they would need and instructions on what to do immediately if something happens to you. In addition, we will give you the tools to ensure that anyone staying with your children while you aren’t there knows exactly what to do if something happens to you. You Have Someone In Your Life You Would NEVER Want Raising Your Kids While this may not apply to you, if it does, you absolutely, 100%, without question need to contact us for a Kids Protection Plan STAT. If you have anyone in your life you would never want raising your kids if you aren’t able to due to illness or injury, we can ensure that person is confidentially excluded from your plan using a Kids Protection Plan. And, we can structure it so that this confidential document is only brought forward if necessary to keep your children out of the care of the person you would never want to raise them. You Have Unique Desires For Your Kids’ Education, Health Care or Financial Well-Being You’ve probably given a lot of thought to how you want to educate your children, the kinds of healthcare decisions you make for them, and how you want them to experience reality from a financial perspective. If that’s the case, then you absolutely want to ensure that anyone raising your children, if you can’t, will know how you would have wanted these decisions to be made. Otherwise, if you don’t take the time to leave instructions to the people who could raise your children, they will not know how you would make decisions if you cannot be there to communicate your hopes, dreams, wishes, and desires. And, here’s the great thing about this … there’s a strong chance that you are not going to become incapacitated or die while your children are minors (phew), and yet taking the time to write down your unique desires for their well-being and care is an illuminating process in and of itself that will make you a better parent right now. We hear it again and again from our clients that when they create their Kids Protection Plan with us, they immediately feel a great deal of relief and a belief that they are being the best parents they can possibly be. They have more clarity about what’s really important to them, what they want to emphasize, who they want their children to develop relationships with, and where they can better focus their own time, energy, and attention. If you aren’t sure where to start when creating these instructions, don’t worry. We will support you with the whole process when we create your Kids Protection Plan. Comprehensive Protection for The Ones You Love Most Nominating permanent legal guardians is an essential piece of your estate plan, but in reality, it often isn’t enough to ensure your child remains in the care of people you choose, know, love, and trust if something happens to you. If your children are ever left with a relative, or if there is anyone in your life you wouldn’t want raising your kids, or if you have unique high-value wishes for the way your children are raised when it comes to their education, health, or financial well-being, you need a full-fledged Kids Protection Plan. If you’re ready to create a Kids Protection Plan for your child, the first step is to schedule your Life and Legacy Planning Session . During the Session, I’ll look at everything you own and everyone you love to get to know your family and your wishes on a personal level. Then I’ll explain how the law would affect your family if something happened to you today, and together, we’ll design a plan that will protect your assets and your loved ones, no matter what. To get started, click here and schedule a complimentary 15-minute call or e-mail lauren@kaplanestatelaw.com.

You hired a lawyer, signed your estate planning documents, and filed them safely away. Or maybe your financial advisor created your documents, or you might have done them yourself online, for free using AI. You think your work is done. But then you die, and your loved ones are left battling court delays, family conflict, and financial loss.  It’s a scenario I’ve seen too many times. Families who thought they were protected learn—too late—that their loved ones' estate plan  failed them. The problem? Traditional and DIY estate planning focuses on creating legal documents, not on building a plan that works when your loved ones need it most. In this article, I’ll share real stories I’ve heard and read about that show why documents aren’t enough—and how Life & Legacy Planning offers a better solution. When Legal Documents Create Legal Disasters Let’s start with a few families who did everything “right.” They worked with lawyers, signed estate plans, and trusted the process. But those plans didn’t work when it mattered most. The Father Who Tried to Protect His Eight Children A loving father created a trust to divide his assets among his eight children. But the attorney he worked with missed one small—but critical—detail: a strip of land near the family beach home wasn’t titled in the name of the trust. When the father died, that oversight sparked a costly legal mess. His children faced delays, infighting, and a breakdown in trust—not only with each other, but with the attorney. And the very plan meant to protect them became a source of conflict. The Blended Family That Fell Apart Overnight One man left his entire estate to his second wife, trusting her to “do right” by his daughter from his first marriage. But when he died, that trust was shattered. His wife kept everything - which she was entitled to do because he intentionally left all his assets to her -  and cut off his daughter completely. The daughter was left with two painful options: spend thousands in court with little hope of winning, or walk away with nothing. This father never imagined that grief and money would change family dynamics. But they often do. The DIY Planner Who Unintentionally Disinherited Her Family Another woman was proud of her financial savvy and used online templates to create a trust. Later, she wrote out a list of personal gifts for her children and grandchildren. But she didn’t realize that list had no legal standing. She also didn’t realize that the online trust document stated that the law in a different state dictated how the trust would be interpreted. It was a state she had never lived in, and thousands of miles from her home. When she died, her second husband inherited everything. Her children went to court, and the case became expensive and contentious - exactly the outcome Jane was trying to avoid by drafting a trust in the first place. Each of these people thought they were making smart decisions. They believed having legal documents meant they were protected. But, as the stories illustrate, documents alone aren’t enough. Why “Simple” Plans Often Cost the Most Another dangerous myth? Thinking your estate is “simple.” I can’t tell you how many people call my office and say something to the effect of, “My situation is very simple, I don’t need anything complicated.” Then we meet for a Life & Legacy Planning Session, and they discover that what they thought was “simple” actually wasn’t. Most estates are more complicated than people think. The truth is, even basic plans can fall apart without guidance. The Daughter Who Lost the Family Home After her father passed away, a woman discovered his house was still under mortgage—and behind on payments. She only found out because she was cleaning out his house and saw the bank’s letters in the mail. He did not have an inventory of his assets and liabilities she could find and know what to do. She couldn’t afford to catch up on his mortgage with her own money. She tried to negotiate with the bank, but she lacked legal authority to do so. That meant she had to file paperwork and had to wait for the court to appoint her as estate administrator before negotiating with the bank. The court process took months because the courts were backed up with cases. Before she had authority to act, the bank foreclosed. The equity in her inheritance vanished. A Better Approach: Life & Legacy Planning These stories show why traditional estate planning fails. It treats planning like a one-time transaction—a stack of documents to sign and forget. But the documents alone won’t ensure your kids aren’t disinherited, the equity in your home is lost, and that your loved ones aren’t left with a mess. That's why Life & Legacy Planning is different. With this approach, you don’t just get documents. You get a comprehensive plan that addresses: Your assets:  including a complete and updated inventory where your loved ones can find it and no assets get lost Your wishes:  from how assets are divided to how children are raised Your family dynamics: so that conflict is minimized, not created, and you don’t accidentally disinherit your children Ongoing updates: to ensure your plan stays relevant as your life changes And most importantly, your loved ones get a trusted advisor—someone to call when the worst happens, who knows your plan and can guide them step-by-step, relieving them of stress, time off from work, extra expenses out of their pockets, and who provides support when they’re grieving.  Documents alone cannot do that. Real Protection Means More Than Documents on a Shelf When you create a Life & Legacy Plan with me, your family will know where to find important documents and how to access accounts. They’ll know what steps to take, what bills to pay, and who to turn to for help. A Life & Legacy Plan goes further to protect your family: I will ensure your documents are not only signed, but that your trust is properly funded so your loved ones don’t have to go to court. I will create and maintain a detailed asset inventory, including life insurance, retirement accounts, digital assets, and more. I will review your plan regularly because your life, your finances, and the law all change over time - and if your plan doesn’t accurately reflect your life when you die or become incapacitated, it will fail. Your life isn’t static, and so your plan shouldn’t be either. Planning Isn’t for You—It’s for the People You Love Planning is about the people who will be left behind. They’re the ones you do it for. So, ask yourself these questions: Do you want them to waste months in court? Struggle to locate assets? Argue with siblings? Lose a home or miss an inheritance? Or do you want them to feel secure, supported, and cared for—because you took the time to put a real plan in place? Take Action Today The stories I've shared aren't isolated incidents. They represent what happens to thousands of families every year who thought they were protected by traditional estate planning. Each person believed their situation was different, their family was closer, they could trust their spouse to carry out their wishes, and that their planning was sufficient. They never imagined they'd become cautionary tales. Don't let your family become another story of estate planning gone wrong. The families in these stories thought it could never happen to them, but it did. The difference is that you still have time to create a plan that will actually protect the people you love most. Click here to schedule a complimentary 15-minute discovery call to learn more about how I can support you.