Estate Planning Attorney in Miami
If you want to ensure that your wishes regarding your health care, the disposition of your property upon your passing, and end of your life desires are respected and memorialized in a legally enforceable manner, then Estate Planning is the manner to achieve those goals.
What can an estate planning lawyer do for you?
Most people think of Estate Planning as simply writing a Last Will and Testament, but an Estate Planning attorney can help you with much more than just a Last Will and Testament. There are many options for Miami Estate Planning, including wills, trusts, living wills, living trusts, and health care surrogates. After consultation, a combination of these and other planning techniques should be tailored for individual needs, not simply the substitution of a name on cookie-cutter documents.
Wills
A Last Will and Testament is the most well-known Estate Planning tool. A Last Will and Testament is a document that outlines how you want your money and property to be distributed upon your death. A Last Will and Testament can also be used to name a Guardian of your minor children in the event that the other parent does not survive you. A Last Will and Testament can also be used to specifically disinherit someone who may otherwise be entitled to inherit from your estate.
Trusts
Trusts are additional planning techniques that can be used as a complement to the Last Will and Testament or in some manner as an alternative to a Last Will and Testament. It permits for continued management of the property and assets, generally without Court intervention, and permits more private dispositions of property and assets. It also avoids probate administration of the property and assets in the Trust.
A Trust can also provide for flexibility regarding management or distribution permitting you to possess a continuing opportunity to exert more control over how your assets are used.
For example, you can specify that a child cannot receive their inheritance before a certain age, or that a portion of it may only be used for educational costs.
A Trust permits continued management of the assets after the probate administration, a/k/a probate process. Rather than the property and assets being distributed to the Beneficiaries, a Trustee is appointed to hold the assets for the benefit of the Beneficiaries. The Trustee manages and distributes the Trust assets pursuant to the terms of the Trust document.
A Trust that is established in your lifetime or in your Last Will and Testament may, and can also have tax benefits for your heirs.
Living Trusts
Living Trusts, (a/k/a Inter Vivos Revocable Trusts), are a flexible option. The most common planning technique with a Trust is to place assets in the Trust to be managed for the benefit of the Settlor (the person who creates the trust) during their lifetime and then have such assets held in the Trust to be held or distributed from the Trust as designated by the Settlor.
Living Wills
Living Wills are also known as Advanced Directives or Health Care Directives. A Living Will is an advanced directive regarding the decision to either provide, withhold, or withdraw the provision of life-prolonging procedures. It applies when a person has a terminal condition, an end-stage condition, or is in a persistent vegetative state.
Health Care Surrogates
You can name a health care surrogate to make medical decisions for you in the event of your incapacitation. You may designate a healthcare surrogate under Florida law.
Why do you need an estate planning lawyer?
Estate Planning advice is both necessary for individuals with or without accumulations of wealth. An experienced probate and Estate Planning lawyer have experience with the law and can advise you on how to structure your planning to get the results you want.
Estate planning can also be a complicated process, which means it’s easy to make mistakes if you don’t know what you’re doing. While it is possible to do much of the process of Estate Planning on your own if you choose to if you want to ensure that it is done correctly, a Miami Estate Planning attorney such as the attorneys at the law offices of David Howard Goldberg is essential to guide and advise you on the law and how it relates to your estate.
How much does an estate planning lawyer charge?
A Miami Estate Planning attorney is essential to your Estate Planning needs. We charge for Estate Planning either a flat fee or charge by billable hours for our services. Therefore, how much you pay will depend on which types of documents you need to prepare and how complex your Estate Planning needs to be.
How to Choose an Estate Planning Attorney
Choosing a professional to do any task for you can be daunting, especially if you need help with an issue that requires experience and the ability to communicate. On top of that, Estate Planning is one of the most important actions you ever take in your life, and you want to be absolutely certain that at the completion of the process you both understand what documents you have signed, but also their effect. It is very important to consult a lawyer who is qualified and experienced in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Administration, in addition to Probate and Trust Litigation before creating a Trust. Knowledge in all these areas permits a planner to see an issue from all areas, not just one side, and plan for problems of all types. The Attorneys at the law offices of David Howard Goldberg, P.L. have experience with drafting and administering all forms and types of Estate Planning documentation. They have experience at both the Trial and Appellate levels with issues relating to the creation, administration, and distribution of such documents. When drafting, the years of experience gained in probate litigation of such issues permits the Attorneys at the law offices of David Howard Goldberg, P.L. to be cognizant of potential issues which could, and often do arise, and seek to, as best as possible under the facts, draft to prevent such issues from arising.