What are estate planning documents?

Estate planning documents outline the goals and wishes of a person no longer with us. An attorney creates estate planning documents that make suggestions for the individuals. It is important to note that estate planning documents are not legally binding. Estate planning documents are only suggestions, and suggestions are not law.

What are the five estate planning documents?

The five estate planning documents are the will, power of attorney, living will, health care proxy, and durable power of attorney.

A will is a document that names who will inherit your property, what will happen to any jointly owned property, and what should happen to your minor children. A living will (also called a health care directive) tells your doctors what kind of care you want or don’t want if you can’t speak for yourself. A durable power of attorney gives someone you trust the ability to make decisions about your property or finances if you can’t make them yourself. 

A healthcare proxy names someone to make medical decisions for you if you can’t speak for yourself. A letter of instruction tells your family or other loved ones what you want to be done with your remains.

An estate plan is a set of documents that help the person making the plan determine how they want their assets distributed after they die. The five crucial estate planning documents are a will, a power of attorney, a living will, a medical power of attorney, and a letter of instruction. Therefore, a will document specifies the assets after a person’s death. A power of attorney allows the person to appoint someone to act on their behalf in certain situations.

Last will (LW&M)

This legal document serves as the cornerstone for an effective estate strategy. Your attorney will propose a will-based or a trust-based estate plan after you begin your estate planning journey.

Living Trustee

This legal agreement made during your lifetime allows you to transfer assets into a trust for your beneficiaries without going through probate court processes. It is also known as a revocable living trust. There is no minimum asset size required to establish a living trust. On the other hand, individuals and families with vast, complex estates and several beneficiaries use it more frequently.

You are not limited to selecting a spouse or a family member as your agent. Being “durable” indicates that the organization will continue to function even if you become incapacitated and unable to manage affairs independently. On the other hand, a broad POA would become ineffective the moment the person becomes disabled.

Durable Power of Attorney for Property (POA)

This legal agreement delegated authority to someone else, known as your agent, to act on your behalf. You can specify a primary and backup agent if the primary cannot serve. The will designates Spouses as each other’s agents.

Healthcare Power of Attorney (POA)

As with the Durable POA, you appoint another individual as your agent. In addition, you can specify a primary and backup agent if the primary cannot serve. Whereas the Durable POA is concerned with financial problems, this legal instrument is concerned with healthcare decisions. The will designates most spouses as each other’s agents. However, you can choose someone other than a spouse or family member.

Living Will

The Advanced healthcare directive is a legal instrument specifying end-of-life care instruction in a living will. Sometimes, there is a mistake of a will for a final testament and a living will where these two documents serve distinctly. 

Conclusion

There are many distinct trusts, each serving a particular purpose and achieving different objectives. The frequently used trust in estate planning is the revocable living trust. You can plan for continuous administration of your financial affairs throughout your lifetime (for example, if you become incompetent), at your death, and even for future generations by placing assets into a revocable trust.

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What Do You Mean by NYC Probate Lawyer Contesting a Will?

When someone contests a Will, it merely means that they object to Will’s validity and terms. Anyone can contest a Will, but ‘anyone’ is someone who has some advantage or gains if it is proven to be invalid. These people may not be included or may be included in the Will, or they can be other inheritors of the Will. 

The contesting party may be children or grandchildren, siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, spouses, business partners, or friends of the deceased. If the children contesting the Will are minor, then their guardian can contest on their behalf. 

Why Will Someone Contest a Will?

There are several reasons to contest a Will during probate proceedings. Here are some general points which are to be kept in mind to prove a Will legally in Court.

• The legal Will must be created by someone who is mentally competent and of adult age.
• Will should not be created due to the influence of any outsider or relatives.
• The Will should go by laws of the State where the deceased had all his estates.
• The sign on the Will should be proved with proper documents of the deceased.

Here are some common grounds based on which a Will can be contested—

• Claims of influence while making of the Will.
• Fraud Cases.
• Improper execution of Will or not prepared with enough time.
• In case the deceased was not mentally fit, then the Will can be challenged quickly.
• Handwritten or holographic Will.
• A Will without a sign of forged signature is open to contests.

Any knowledgeable NYC Probate Lawyer can provide all the above information.

How can NYC Probate Lawyer Contest a Will in Probate Cases? 

The executor named in the probate needs to take the initiative to file the probate in the Surrogate’s Court and all supporting documents. He should list out all the assets, bills, and debts of the deceased.  

It is the executor’s responsibility to information regarding the death and assets to everyone mentioned in the Will to get their consent in favor of the probate. He/she needs to distribute the property amongst all the beneficiaries mentioned. 

1.    Gather your part of knowledge.

The best option is to consult an NYC Probate Lawyer who can explain the steps in detail and all the formalities. Ensure that you have proper ground to challenge the Will. Check all the laws of your State regarding Will Contests, and see whether your reason falls under the law. See, after how much time of someone’s demise, one can challenge the Will.

2.   Form & File the Petition with supporting documents.

Hire a judicial attorney to handle the case if the matter involves substantial valued assets. Finally, file the petition as a claim to change the Will or challenge the Will. Once you file the petition, the next task is to gather witnesses and supporters.

3.   Check whether you have witnesses and shreds of evidence.

The first thing that the probate code does is to set a date of hearing. But before that, the most important thing for you to do is collect all evidence and witnesses to support your claim. The more genuine your witnesses seem to be, the stronger your side of the case will be in return. 

Carefully note down all the dates of hearing and make sure you are present those days for the sessions. In case you cannot appear, ask your lawyer to take the case forward.

No – Contest Clauses

These clauses are very dangerous as they try to stop you from contesting in a Will. Clauses like whoever challenges the Will will lose their interests in the property, or if the person cannot prove the Will to be invalid, he will lose all his property. Hence carefully search for such clauses.

 Conclusion

Open contesting a will takes almost months or years and also draws vast amounts of money. But without legal advice from an NYC Probate Lawyer, one is generally blind in such cases. Hence, one repeatedly thinks whether you want the case or not. Make sure you have all the documents and evidence ready to support your claim – Double-check for no contest statements.

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An NYC Probate Attorney: Accessing The Beneficiary’s Probate Documents

If you cannot understand the legal jargon, you would not be aware of the probate process either.    Furthermore, you may not know how to access probate documents even if you are the beneficiary of the will.  In such a circumstance, it would be best to equip yourself with an NYC probate attorney.  He/she will help you access the probate document and explain why you need to go through the will.  The assistance of a probate lawyer will ensure that you are aligned with the probate proceedings.    Furthermore, it would be best to have substantial knowledge of the beneficiary’s rights and duties.

Why Do You Need To Access The Probate Documents?

You may ask yourself why I need to know what is in the will.  As a beneficiary, you have the authority to find out about your dear one’s last testament.   Nonetheless, you also have to ensure that the administrator executes the functions in accordance with the law.  Without going through the probate document, you may not prove to be a catalyst in the probate process. It is crucial for the beneficiary to stay aware of the probate document.  Some of the probate documents are –

1. Will or testament
2. Death certificate of the testator
3. Affidavit of Heirship 
4. Letter of Testamentary
5. Petition for probate
6. Petition for ancillary probate
7. Petition of letters of administration
8. Inventory of estate’s assets
9. Successor letters testamentary
10. Petition for Surrogate Court (if needed) 
11. Petition for successor executor (if needed)

How Do You Access The Probate Documents – An NYC Probate Attorney?

The fundamental right of a beneficiary quotes the executor’s duty to hand over a copy of the will following the death.  The executor discretely divulges the information in the will and trust to avoid unnecessary mayhem.  Thus, he/she notifies only the listed beneficiaries and creditors rather than make the will a public document.  At times, the executor may try to conceal certain information even from the beneficiaries.  In this process, he/she may misuse his authority and not notify the real beneficiaries.  Thus, it is the beneficiary’s legal obligation to know how to obtain probate documents.  Some are mentioned below.

Rights of Beneficiary’s Information

You can ask an NYC probate attorney to intervene if the probate case is not transparent, and you suspect the executor of hiding information.   Under the Right to Beneficiary information, the lawyer can demand a copy of the will or trust for the beneficiary to see.   Likewise, the beneficiary has the right to view the copy of the trust.  However, if the trustee does not reveal relevant information to the beneficiary, the NYC probate attorney can step in.

Right Of Entitlement

It is no surprise if the probate process takes more than a year.  However, a complicated estate or estate in multiple states can take longer.  The executor has to keep the beneficiaries posted about the court administration and progress.  

Accountability

The executor hires an appraiser to evaluate the cost of the estate.  The beneficiary has the right to know the comprehensive value of the estate.  Though the executor is only the caretaker of the estate, he requires the beneficiary’s approval to execute payment to creditors.

Unbiased Execution

You also have the right to know the names of other beneficiaries in case there are more than one.   The executor should be impartial in his approach during the entire probate process.   Furthermore, the legal administrator’s task is to prevent any dispute arising amongst the beneficiaries.  If you apprehend the executor’s preferential approach, you (as a beneficiary), have the right to report the same to the NYC probate attorney.  The attorney will look into the matter and plead for the replacement of the executor.  

Bottom Line

As a beneficiary, you have plenty of tedious tasks to perform.  Having an NYC probate attorney beside you to handle tricky situations of probate can give you a sense of relief.  

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Now, as you might already know that estate planning is all about securing your assets for the future of your kids and the family. You have worked long and hard and now amassed some possessions but what if you die? One of life’s few guarantees is that one day we will die and there is no running away from it. Who will inherit our belongings? Will it be your spouse, children, family member, close friend or will you leave everything to a charity? The choice is your but only through proper estate planning.

What does an Estate Plan Include?

An estate plan can include a lot of elements and you must know learn more about them. It is really very important to be educated on the subject before stepping moving forward with creating your estate plan. So, here in this blog, we are going to talk about the things which an estate plan may include.

Estate planning Components

Will/Trust

A lot of us imagine a Will/Trust to be related to a person who is dying. Some also believe that a Will/Trust is only for the wealthy or those with lots of real estate. However, having a Will/Trust just means that you wish to protect your belongings and safeguard them for the person or organization of your choosing to inherit them when you are no longer around.

Power of Attorney

Let’s say you are running a small or even big company and something happens to you in which you aren’t able to run a business then what’s next? Who is going to handle your business? Well, in that case, you will need to have someone with “Power of Attorney”. You can pick that person whom you will empower to handle your finances in such an event.

Beneficiary

If you wish to have a say in who stands to inherit your belongings you must appoint a beneficiary during your estate planning. Each state has their own set of laws if you don’t appoint a beneficiary the courts will appoint them based on state law.

Letter of Intent

It is very important to have the letter of intent because that can contain your wishes which you want to tell your beneficiary. You must know that the purpose of this letter is to tell your beneficiary about your plans regarding your asset or any other instructions such as where you are to be buried.

Healthcare Proxy

It is simply like the power of attorney but with only limited power. You can see that the “Health” word is attached to it which means that the person who will be your Healthcare proxy is going to decide your health-related decisions when you aren’t able to take that kind of decision by yourself.

Guardianship

You must know that guardianship is a very important element of estate planning. It comes in handy when you want to pick someone to be your kids’ guardian after your death. Now, if you won’t pick any then the court will pick for you and that person could be anyone from your family even potentially a family member whom you don’t even trust.

A living Will

It is one of the most important components of estate planning. You must know that “A Living Will” comes in handy if you want to take care of yourself even when you aren’t able to do it. It does help in many scenarios and one of them is like falling in a coma when you aren’t able to make your decision then “A Living Will” dictates your wishes of how you wish to be cared for.

In the end, planning allows you to make decisions about your future and at times that of your loved ones. Having a plan is important. When you are ready our firm offers free consultations, come in and learn more of how you and your family can benefit from a good estate plan. Call us today to schedule your free consultation with one of our experienced attorney’s.

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