Wills and Estate Planning
For many people, when they think of estate planning, they think of a will. A will is a basic document that provides instruction to your executor as to the disposition of your assets. It can do much more and even if the bulk of your assets are outside the probate process, a will can name a guardian for your minor children or detail who receives personal property of your estate.
Estate planning encompasses a wide variety of legal solutions. For some, it may mean a will, powers of attorney and an advance medical directive. For others, in addition to those documents, it may entail the creation of multiple trusts, the transfer and retitling of numerous assets and the creation of a long-term plan to provide income for retirement, protect assets from excessive taxation, provisions for family members with special needs, and the plan for your business to continue in the event of incapacity, illness or death.
Probate and Estate Administration
Probate is the legal process where an Ohio court determines the validity of a will, names an executor or personal representative (as indicated in the will), and supervises the distribution of the assets by the executor. Depending on your circumstances, it can be time consuming and expensive. If you have no will, the court will apply the intestate succession law to distribute your assets.
With any estate, the use of certain tools, like trusts and proper beneficiary designations, you can avoid much of the expense of probate, because those assets pass outside the probate process. We can explain how this works and how it can be beneficial for your estate.
During probate, an executor or personal representative is named. This person is responsible for the "administration" of the estate. Depending on the complexity of the assets passing through probate, this job may be straightforward or challenging.
Because the executor need not be an attorney and is often a spouse or adult child, seeking the advice of our lawyers can help ensure that you execute the responsibilities of the position appropriately and prevent mistakes that could lead to disputes or litigation.
For many people, when they think of estate planning, they think of a will. A will is a basic document that provides instruction to your executor as to the disposition of your assets. It can do much more and even if the bulk of your assets are outside the probate process, a will can name a guardian for your minor children or detail who receives personal property of your estate.
Estate planning encompasses a wide variety of legal solutions. For some, it may mean a will, powers of attorney and an advance medical directive. For others, in addition to those documents, it may entail the creation of multiple trusts, the transfer and retitling of numerous assets and the creation of a long-term plan to provide income for retirement, protect assets from excessive taxation, provisions for family members with special needs, and the plan for your business to continue in the event of incapacity, illness or death.
Probate and Estate Administration
Probate is the legal process where an Ohio court determines the validity of a will, names an executor or personal representative (as indicated in the will), and supervises the distribution of the assets by the executor. Depending on your circumstances, it can be time consuming and expensive. If you have no will, the court will apply the intestate succession law to distribute your assets.
With any estate, the use of certain tools, like trusts and proper beneficiary designations, you can avoid much of the expense of probate, because those assets pass outside the probate process. We can explain how this works and how it can be beneficial for your estate.
During probate, an executor or personal representative is named. This person is responsible for the "administration" of the estate. Depending on the complexity of the assets passing through probate, this job may be straightforward or challenging.
Because the executor need not be an attorney and is often a spouse or adult child, seeking the advice of our lawyers can help ensure that you execute the responsibilities of the position appropriately and prevent mistakes that could lead to disputes or litigation.
