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Every individual has
an estate plan. Not every individual has any idea of what that
estate plan might be.
Regardless of the actual
techniques someone might use, whether those might be wills, trusts,
joint tenancy ownerships or others, the four core goals of estate
planning remain essentially the same. They are:
1. Lifetime Considerations:
One of the most important parts of estate planning deals with considerations
of management of one's property during lifetime, not only its disposition
at death. Examples of this type of planning would be powers of
attorney which permit others to manage your property or personal
affairs for you, even if you are disabled or otherwise unable to
do this on your own. Other examples would be simple forms of creditor
protection planning, shifting income within a family, or Medicaid
or other government program planning whereby qualification for
various programs is assured while protecting one's other assets.
2. Disposition of Property
at Death: One's estate plan will govern the ultimate disposition
of property at death. Done correctly, it will not only dispose
of property to the proper beneficiaries, but it can also protect
that property from a particular beneficiary's inability to manage
it, whether by reason of age, disability or simple profligacy.
3. Tax and Asset Conservation
Planning: Proper planning also includes taking steps to reduce
unnecessary losses in the amount of property going to one's family
or other beneficiaries. This can mean proper structuring of transfers
to those beneficiaries, or, in the remarkably few instances where
an individual actually has estate or other death tax concerns (perhaps
as few as 3% of the decedents actually have any concern), then
proper tax planning is essential to avoid paying unnecessary taxes.
4. Providing for Obligations:
To the extent liquidity is necessary at death, whether for payment
of taxes, purchasing the decedent's interest in a business, providing
for support of dependants or any other similar obligations, then
arrangements must be made, whether through the use of insurance,
liquidation of assets or other means, to meet those obligations.
Planning ahead reduces the stress of these situations. |
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Wills, Trusts and Estates
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| Wills, Trusts and Estates
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| Trust and Estate Litigation
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