Absolutely. Estate planning is crucial for everyone to ensure your wishes are respected, regardless of the size of your estate. Estate planning:

• Prepares others to respect your healthcare desires
• Puts in place plans to maximize your savings
• Prepares for yours and your loved ones’ future

Estate Planning is about protecting your loved ones, yourself, and your legacy.

In addition, estate planning encompasses deciding who will make decisions for you if you have emergency medical situations and become incapacitated. Preparing with a plan gives your family answers about what you would want in a stressful and emotional time.

Also, without a will, North Carolina’s intestacy laws dictate how your assets are divided. These laws may not reflect your personal wishes. Intestacy law can potentially leave loved ones without the inheritance you intended for them.

Without clear instructions on asset distribution, family members may dispute over inheritances. This can lead to strained relationships, legal battles, and division within the family, causing emotional and financial stress.

It includes probating the will, paying debts, and distributing assets to beneficiaries, all of which we can handle for you or help you accomplish.

Each step of the estate administration process requires careful attention to legal details and deadlines. It’s essential to manage these tasks efficiently to honor the deceased’s wishes and comply with North Carolina law. And it’s crucial to make correct accountings to the court. 

As a personal estate representative, you can be held legally responsible for any financial mistakes.

That’s why an experienced estate lawyer is crucial to ensure exact and precisely correct accountings and answers when accomplishing these tasks:

• Obtain the Death Certificate
• Locate and file the Will with the Local County Clerk
• Wait for the Court to probate the Will (if there is one)
• Apply for Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration to become the Estate’s Executor or Administrator (Personal Representative)
• Notify Heirs and Beneficiaries
• Appraise Property and Assets
• Take Inventory of the Estate’s Assets
• Submit the Inventory to the Probate Court
• Open an Estate Bank Account
• Notify Creditors and Publish Notice to Creditors
• Pay Valid Claims to Creditors
• Sell Property or Other Assets if needed with Court Approval
• File Estate Tax Returns if Necessary
• Pay Estate Taxes and Final Personal Income Taxes
• Distribute Assets to Beneficiaries as per the Will (or NC Intestate Laws if there is no Last Will)
• Prepare and File a Final Account with the Court
• Close the Estate with the Court’s Approval

Ensure you hold up under the court’s scrutiny with our assistance. Give us a call and set up an initial consultation today.

Find your way and feel confident about the estate administration process!

Elder law focuses on issues affecting aging individuals, such as long-term care planning and guardianship, providing peace of mind for the future.

• Estate Planning: Prepare for the management and distribution of your estate after your passing. Create wills, trusts, and other instruments to ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes. Minimize taxes and legal complications for your beneficiaries.

• Durable Power of Attorney: Appoint someone you trust to manage your affairs if you cannot do so. Your POA agent can handle tasks like paying bills, managing investments, personal and healthcare issues, and making financial decisions on your behalf. We can help you limit or broaden the scope of your agent’s powers based on your specific needs.

• Advance Directives Such as a Living Will: Advance Directives empower you to make your healthcare wishes known in case you cannot communicate them yourself. You can specify your preferences regarding life-sustaining treatments, end-of-life care, and other critical medical decisions.

• Healthcare Power of Attorney: Similar to a Durable Power of Attorney, but specifically for healthcare decisions, this legal document lets you designate someone to make medical decisions for you’re unable. Using your advance directives, your agent makes medical decisions that respect your wishes. Advance directives relieve your loved ones of the burden of making these difficult decisions for you during emotional times.

• Long-Term Care and Medicaid Planning: Medicaid planning involves structuring your finances to qualify for Medicaid while preserving your assets. Medicaid planning is essential for covering long-term care costs, such as nursing home care, without exhausting your savings. Health insurance does not generally cover assisted living or long-term skilled nursing care.

• Guardianship: If become legally incompetent or incapacitated without preparing for the future with a power of attorney, a court may become involved. In these cases, a court may legally appoint a guardian to make decisions about your care and finances.

 Each of the above planning types plays a vital role in ensuring that your later years are as comfortable and secure as possible, reflecting your wishes and needs.

We recommend reviewing your plan every few years or after major life events like marriage, birth of a child, or relocation.

Life events such as new friendships, estrangements, marriages within the family, or the loss of a loved one can change who you want to include as beneficiaries in your will. For instance, you might want to include a new family member or remove someone due to changed circumstances.

Other good reasons to update your estate plan include changes in your financial situation, a new business or job, adjusting charity provisions, or becoming part of a blended family.

It’s important to update your will to reflect any major life changes.

Yes, we can assist you in setting up a variety of trusts, each designed to align with your unique requirements and objectives. Consider one of these types of trusts for your needs:

• Special Needs Trusts: Provide for a loved one with disabilities without affecting their eligibility for government benefits.

• Living Trusts: Allow for the efficient transfer of assets while bypassing the often lengthy and public probate process.

• Charitable Trusts: Offer a way to give back while also providing tax benefits and maintaining a degree of control over how the assets are used.

• Contingency Trusts: Give you control over when and how to give assets as an inheritance.  

Talk with us for information about other kinds of trusts. We’ll work with you to determine how best to meet your financial goals.