Estate Planning
Estate planning is more than just writing a will. Done right, organizing your assets can help avoid family fights and prevent a majority of your estate from going to the government later. But smart estate planning can be complex, involving living wills, various trusts and other legal documents. If you don’t have a proper estate plan, the emotional pain of your passing could be compounded by financial chaos. We provide advice on estate planning techniques, which can be used not only upon death, but also during lifetime to enable wealth to pass to a client's intended beneficiaries in the most tax-efficient manner. These transactions can include the creation of generation-skipping trusts and business entities that can be used to transfer the growth of an asset out of a client's estate. We also focus on personal and non-tax goals and concerns. We solve questions regarding how to best provide for one's family, both during lifetime and at death, and who should control the assets after a client's death.
Probate, Estate and Trust Administration
The estates we administer include decedents' estates, as well as guardianship estates for minors and disabled adults. We assist the fiduciaries of a decedent's estate through the probate process, appearing in court, guiding them in the transfer of assets and resolution of claims, as well as the implementation of the decedent's estate plan. We regularly prepare required state and federal estate and inheritance tax returns. We also advise and apply planning techniques to minimize and/or defer taxes. The trusts we administer vary in size and complexity. We assist trustees in the administration of trusts created upon the death of a client and trusts created by our clients during their lifetimes to implement their estate plans or particular family planning objectives.
Contested Estate, Trust and Guardianship Matters
You need an experienced attorney to assist you in cases of a will or a trust contest, claims against an estate or disputes over the administration of a trust. We assist our assist clients in making good decisions on resolution options, whether it be settlement, the courtroom or mediation. We also represent fiduciaries and individuals in the construction and reformation of wills and trusts when provisions are unclear or tax laws have changed, resulting in unforeseen tax consequences from provisions in irrevocable documents.
Business Succession Planning and Business Structures
Many of our clients have worked years to build their businesses and want that success to continue, even after they pass away. Our attorneys work closely with our clients to develop plans that will minimize estate taxes upon their death, while at the same time, pass the business on to the next generation. We achieve these goals through various techniques, whether through lifetime gifting or designing a plan for implementation upon death. Our business planning services include counseling clients in structuring new business entities and business agreements that offer business succession planning and asset protection advantages. These services include the formation of partnerships, corporations and limited liability companies and the negotiation and preparation of buy-sell agreements.
Charitable Planning, Trusts and Planned Giving
For our clients who have charitable giving goals, we assist them in selecting the gift technique that will accomplish their personal and tax goals. We assist our clients in the creation and administration of charitable remainder trusts and charitable lead trusts, donor-advised funds, private foundations and supporting organizations. We regularly advise our clients on gifts of appreciated property, the creation of charitable contribution programs that are integrated into their estate plan and the design of vehicles to involve younger family members in charitable giving.
Estate planning is more than just writing a will. Done right, organizing your assets can help avoid family fights and prevent a majority of your estate from going to the government later. But smart estate planning can be complex, involving living wills, various trusts and other legal documents. If you don’t have a proper estate plan, the emotional pain of your passing could be compounded by financial chaos. We provide advice on estate planning techniques, which can be used not only upon death, but also during lifetime to enable wealth to pass to a client's intended beneficiaries in the most tax-efficient manner. These transactions can include the creation of generation-skipping trusts and business entities that can be used to transfer the growth of an asset out of a client's estate. We also focus on personal and non-tax goals and concerns. We solve questions regarding how to best provide for one's family, both during lifetime and at death, and who should control the assets after a client's death.
Probate, Estate and Trust Administration
The estates we administer include decedents' estates, as well as guardianship estates for minors and disabled adults. We assist the fiduciaries of a decedent's estate through the probate process, appearing in court, guiding them in the transfer of assets and resolution of claims, as well as the implementation of the decedent's estate plan. We regularly prepare required state and federal estate and inheritance tax returns. We also advise and apply planning techniques to minimize and/or defer taxes. The trusts we administer vary in size and complexity. We assist trustees in the administration of trusts created upon the death of a client and trusts created by our clients during their lifetimes to implement their estate plans or particular family planning objectives.
Contested Estate, Trust and Guardianship Matters
You need an experienced attorney to assist you in cases of a will or a trust contest, claims against an estate or disputes over the administration of a trust. We assist our assist clients in making good decisions on resolution options, whether it be settlement, the courtroom or mediation. We also represent fiduciaries and individuals in the construction and reformation of wills and trusts when provisions are unclear or tax laws have changed, resulting in unforeseen tax consequences from provisions in irrevocable documents.
Business Succession Planning and Business Structures
Many of our clients have worked years to build their businesses and want that success to continue, even after they pass away. Our attorneys work closely with our clients to develop plans that will minimize estate taxes upon their death, while at the same time, pass the business on to the next generation. We achieve these goals through various techniques, whether through lifetime gifting or designing a plan for implementation upon death. Our business planning services include counseling clients in structuring new business entities and business agreements that offer business succession planning and asset protection advantages. These services include the formation of partnerships, corporations and limited liability companies and the negotiation and preparation of buy-sell agreements.
Charitable Planning, Trusts and Planned Giving
For our clients who have charitable giving goals, we assist them in selecting the gift technique that will accomplish their personal and tax goals. We assist our clients in the creation and administration of charitable remainder trusts and charitable lead trusts, donor-advised funds, private foundations and supporting organizations. We regularly advise our clients on gifts of appreciated property, the creation of charitable contribution programs that are integrated into their estate plan and the design of vehicles to involve younger family members in charitable giving.