Estate Planning and Probate
Probate is the legal process of resolving all claims and distributing a deceased person’s property, or estate, according to a valid will. A will has to be “probated” by a court, which means the court has to confirm the validity of a deceased person’s will so that interested parties can rely on its authenticity.
Estate planning is the process of accumulating and distributing a person’s estate in a way that maximizes what is transferred to the estate owner’s intended beneficiaries while minimizing taxes and probate court involvement.
Understanding Wills, Trusts, and Other Probate and Estate Planning Tools
We have years of experience drafting wills and trusts for individuals and business owners. We can advise you on a range of probate and estate planning tools, including durable powers of attorney, medical care powers of attorney, elder law planning, establishing guardianships, conservatorships, living wills, contested wills and probate administration.
This is a sampling of the probate and estate planning law services we provide to individuals:
- Conservatorships
- Durable Powers of Attorney
- Elder Law Planning
- Estate Planning for Digital Assets
- Guardianships
- Living Wills
- Medical Care Powers of Attorney
- Probate Administration
- Trust Disputes
- Trusts
- Will Contests
- Wills
Estate Planning and Probate Articles
Y’all Be Careful With Ya’ Language, Ya’ Hear?
Ran across a curious news story from Richmond,Virginia. Apparently, a wife’s father made a $15,000 gift to “Y’all.” The court, after determining that a number of gifts were made solely to the daughter, sided with the son-in-law that the gift of $15,000 was to both...
Handicap the Horses: Place a Sure Bet With a Qualified Spousal Trust
Assume that you are married to a self-proclaimed horse handicapper. Your spouse has acquired this talent unbeknownst to you and has spent considerable time perfecting his or her skill. The financing of this endeavor has proven extremely burdensome, and the luck ran...
A Primer on Guardianship/Conservatorship in Missouri
With the population aging, the onslaught of some of the conditions that come with aging is increasing. The need for a guardian/conservator is more prevalent today than in years past. A guardianship is a legal process whereby one individual is appointed by the Probate...
Congressional Magic or Mischievousness: Is the Federal Estate Tax Repealed, or Isn’t It?
In spite of what you may have heard about taxes in 2010, we believe Ben Franklin's sardonic proverb, with Will Rogers' prescient addition, still holds true - this year more than ever. Nothing is certain but death and taxes – the only difference between the two is that...
