Estate Planning

No doubt about it, losing the patriarch or matriarch of a family is a crushing experience leaving members of a family feeling drained; definitely not the time for unpleasant surprises. Sad to say, too many families do get an unpleasant surprise wrapped in red tape when the departed person dies intestate. Oops, our apologies, there we go using a legal term. Intestate is legalese for dying without having left a will. And to do so is to sentence those left behind to time spent navigating the probate process maze. Legalese lesson number two: Probate is the court-appointed procedure in which one family member is given the responsibility of distributing to the others the assets a parent leaves behind.

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In cases where a parent leaves no will, the assets remain frozen until one person can step up to the responsibility of distributing the estate to the rest of the family in a prescribed order. If there is a remaining spouse, it is quite simple — everything goes to him or her. If there is no spouse, it will be divided up among the sons and daughters but only after it goes through probate which means someone must sift through all the financial paperwork such as bank and investment account statements, property deeds, and vehicle titles, and submit them along with the death certificate of the deceased to the probate court.

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If the paperwork is in order that person will be named the executor of the estate and be responsible for distributing the proceeds. If the paperwork is not in order, it will be thrown out and must be submitted all over again. Probate can take up to several years, or it can be completed in months. Leaving a will on the other hand can ensure that your assets go to whom you wish and be divided according to how you see fit. Obviously, it will be a lot easier for your family if you leave a will.

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Many people put off writing a will because they don't have a lawyer or can't afford one. What they don't know is that while writing a will involves a list of legal dos and don'ts, they are not so intricate and complicated that the average person can't do it with a little help from someone who deals with estate planning day in and day out. And while wills are the bailiwick of a family law attorney, they need not retain one. In fact, they don't even have to consult with one. All they need is a non-legal family law associate.

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For more information on how a non-legal law associate can help you prepare a will, and navigate other matters of estate planning, take a look at https:/www.ripleyslegal.com.