Protecting Your Family’s Future with a New Jersey Estate Planning Attorney

You want to make sure your family is cared for after you are gone, so estate planning is necessary. Wills, trusts, and additional estate planning tools will help you provide for your loved ones after you pass away. First, go over some benefits of planning for the future. Then, you can take the next steps to begin the process.

How estate planning protects a person’s loved ones

A properly developed estate plan accomplishes numerous things. It plans for incapacitation and allows the creator to control what happens to the assets. It also puts a plan in place for minor children and allows estates to avoid probate. It can even help prevent family conflicts. Learn more to find out how a plan can accomplish this and more.

Plan for incapacitation

Incapacitation is a serious problem when people age. When people become incapacitated, they need someone to manage their affairs. An estate planning attorney can draft advanced directives and Powers of Attorney ahead of time. With the proper documents, families do not have to petition the court for guardianship. This allows them to avoid additional emotional turmoil and stress when taking care of aging loved ones.

Control what happens to assets

Estate planning allows people to control what happens to assets upon their passing. Without estate planning, assets are distributed based on New Jersey’s laws of intestacy. The estate administrator must follow these laws to the letter. Unfortunately, that means estranged family members could end up inheriting property.

Protect minor children

Estate planning allows parents to protect minor children. Parents can choose a guardian for the minor children when making the estate plan. They can also create a property management plan to meet the children’s financial needs in the future. In addition, an attorney helps clients ensure children are cared for when parents pass away.

Avoid probate

Loved ones might need assets immediately upon passing. Probate can take months or longer to complete. Estate planning helps people avoid probate. For example, people can use living trusts and other vehicles to prevent assets from going into probate. An attorney also educates clients on which assets automatically pass through probate, such as jointly-owned accounts.

Avoid family conflicts

An estate plan also helps families avoid conflict. Without such a plan, families are left fighting for the assets, even with the laws of intestacy in place. Not knowing the loved one’s wishes means everything is up for grabs. With an estate plan in place, families know what the loved one wanted, reducing or eliminating conflict. In addition, it is much easier for families to heal after a death when the assets transfer peacefully.

Get help from an estate planning attorney

Your estate planning documents must be tailored to meet your needs. You can accomplish that by getting help from an estate planning attorney. First, your attorney will go over your assets and wishes. Then, the attorney can craft an estate plan to help you protect your family’s future.