Estate Planning Services

Estate planning focuses on the orderly management and disposition of an individual’s assets during their lifetime as well as upon their death, with consideration of the impact of such wealth transfer on future generations. Our approach is designed to develop a thorough understanding of your concerns and desires; we also aim to make you fully aware of your options in preparing an estate plan that carefully addresses a wide variety of individual needs and concerns while minimizing taxation and potential for conflict. A well-drafted estate plan ensures that your estate passes to those you want, when you want, and is carried out in the manner you’ve chosen.

Basic estate planning is usually the first step in the planning process. It always begins with an evaluation of the client’s objectives and family and economic situation. We advise our clients about alternative methods of holding title, such as community property versus separate property, the use of revocable living trusts, the advantages and disadvantages of joint tenancy, and the appropriate use of specific business entities. After working together with the client to develop an appropriate plan, we prepare the necessary documentation needed to implement it. This is likely to include revocable living trusts and powers of attorney for property management and health care.

Advanced Estate Planning

For individuals with considerable wealth, estate planning may take advantage of lifetime leveraging: that is, strategies which
transfer significant wealth at reduced transfer tax cost. Such planning involves the combination of at least four taxes:

• estate taxes,
• generation-skipping transfer taxes,
• gift taxes, and
• income taxes.

Further consideration is also given to the client’s specific situation, goals and approach. Specific techniques may be as simple as structured annual gifting programs to benefit family members or friends, or they may involve more sophisticated vehicles such as grantor retained annuity trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, charitable lead trusts and charitable remainder trusts, family limited partnerships and/or limited liability companies, private annuities and intra-family sales. Irrevocable trusts, including dynasty trusts intended to benefit multiple generations for as long as possible, and specialized trust arrangements for minors, for education or for other purposes, are other likely components of our clients’ estate plans.

We also have expertise in sophisticated planning with life insurance, which may be used to provide additional benefits to family members or charity or to provide liquidity for payment of debts and taxes after death. We consider our clients’ family objectives and the appropriate type of insurance policy for achieving those objectives; we design and document irrevocable life
insurance trusts; we advise our clients regarding special arrangements for the payment of premiums; and we provide ongoing
assistance with the proper administration of these trusts in order to ensure maximum tax benefits.

Guardianship

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Elder Law

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Planning For Those with Special Needs

Millions of families deal with the disability of loved ones.  Without proper planning, a family member with special needs could lose valuable government benefits.  With proper planning you can protect your loved ones’ state and federal benefits while still providing for them.

For helpful links for Government benefits and other useful information for those with special needs refer to our Useful
Resources page.