Thursday, April 27, 2017

Using Probate Law and the Steps To Follow

Estate planning is the process of anticipating and arranging, during a person's life, for the management and disposal of that person's estate during the person's life and at and after death, while minimizing gift, estate, generation skipping transfer, and income tax.
Believe it or not, you have an estate. In fact, nearly everyone does. Your estate is comprised of everything you own - your car, home, other real estate, checking and savings accounts, investments, life insurance, furniture, personal possessions. No matter how large or how modest, everyone has an estate and something in common - you can’t take it with you when you die but still you need estate planning and probate law.
An estate planning attorney helps and guides you in choosing the correct options for maintaining your estate after death or in case of incapacity. An experienced attorney seeks to fully understand your desires and goals regarding the maintenance of your estate and other property and suggests ways to achieve those wishes. Estate planning lawyers help people write instructions for the future handling of their property, finances, healthcare, and the future support and care of their loved ones.
When it comes to providing for your family’s financial future, estate planning/ Probate law is the most important step you can take to ensure your assets and their legal rights are protected.  Having a proper estate plan in place guarantees your assets will be properly divided and won’t fall into the hands of the court.
Probate law is the legal process whereby a will is proved in a court and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased
The very first step in the granting of a probate is the legal process of properly overseeing the estate of a deceased person. It involves resolving all the claims and then distributing the property under the will of the property holder. But there is another scenario and that is if the person who passed away had any partnership or there was a co-owner of the business or property then there is no need for probate laws as the property will automatically and legally be owned by the co-owner for example if the deceased person owned bank accounts or property jointly with another person, the co-owner will now be the complete owner of these accounts.
When is probate law needed?
Probate may be needed in the following cases:
  • For transferring the title to the decedent’s assets (assets like bank accounts, real property, stock etc.)
  • For collecting debts owed to the deceased
  • For settling a dispute among all the people claiming to be the owners of the deceased’s property
  • Solving disputes about the validity of the deceased’s will
So one should definitely go for estate planning/Probate law services which are particularly focused on providing advice and direction on techniques and approaches for avoiding probate and related expenses, and the care of individuals who cannot care for themselves, whatever their age.
The Law Office of Sean J. Nichols is dedicated to assisting clients throughout legal issues that come with aging including: elder law, estate planning, probate law and more.  Check out the Law Office of Sean J. Nichols at http://www.seanjnichols.com to contact an estate attorney today.

Key Reasons Why To Have an Estate Plan

Estate planning is the act of securing your assets before you die. Obviously you cannot take anything along with you after your death but what you can do is make sure your property falls into the right and true deserving hands instead of falling under the court.
You don’t have to be very rich for estate planning/ Probate law, don’t think that you will need a lot of assets and a lot of property for that. Believe it or not everyone has assets thought it is a car, a house, electronic devices, clothes that you wear and even a person himself is an asset. Without a plan in place, there could be a lifelong impact on your adored ones, even if you don’t have an expensive home, large investment account or valuable art to pass on. So what is needed is a proper estate planning and probate law.
The drive of estate planning is to formulate the transfer of your assets to your loved and dear ones upon your death. Estate planning allows you to specify where and in which hands each of your assets will go after you are dead. This involves determining who the receivers will be, what each will get, and how to complete those transfers with the minimum tax penalties, while making sure that the estate has enough liquidity to meet its commitments.
For estate planning and probate law you will have to have an estate planning attorney who has knowledge and experience to council you and your family on asset preservation plans which are appropriate for your circumstances and who can also guide you about trusts, will, powers of attorneys, and living wills.
An estate plan includes more than wills and trusts, it also relies on careful and professional advice that is personalized to your condition. While wills and trusts are invaluable, a inclusive estate plan should also incorporate a power of attorney and advance directive. These documents provide necessary protection in the event of an unexpected accident or illness.
A probate law is a process that is supervised by the court for the purpose of admitting the client’s will, appointing an executer and supervising the estate. The assets of the decedent’s are collected, creditors if any are paid and then the remaining assets are distributed among the descendants according to the terms of the will of the deceased. In other  words Probate is basically a process whereby a court reviews a will to make sure that it is genuine, and allows others to make legal challenges to the will.
Consider these four reasons why you should have an estate plan, in order to avoid possible shattering consequences.
  • For preventing your assets from ending up in the hands of the court or unintended beneficiaries
  • For protecting families with young children
  • For stopping heirs from overpaying in taxes
  • For eliminating family messes when you are gone and will never be with them again to sort things out for them
The Law Office of Sean J. Nichols is dedicated to assisting clients throughout legal issues that come with aging including: elder law, estate planning, probate law and more.  Check out the Law Office of Sean J. Nichols at http://www.seanjnichols.com to contact an estate attorney today.