Oak Lawn Estate Planning | Wills Must Be Probated

 This is a news flash to most people, "A Will must be Probated!" Most people think that if they simply have a Will, they will not need their estate probated. This is a common misconception with the general public. Although many people do not have their will probated, without an official closing of their estate by the court, there estate remains in an open state. Additionally, without probate the assets of the Estate, even if distributed, are always available to creditors. A probate attorney will have to take a number of steps to get an estate ready for probate. This ranges from getting the names and addresses of all family members within a certain range from the decedent. Additionally, the probate attorney will have to gather the addresses of all creditors of the estate. He will then take that information along with some other forms to court, along with the Will, so that the judge can determine if an estate should be opened and the Will admitted. This probate of a Will process has some advantages, but it also is an expensive task.

Now that you know that Wills must be probated, what should you do next? You should contact an Estate Planning Attorney to advise you on the best plan for you. You may be better served with a trust to dispose of your assets. Generally, a trust is cheaper over all than the cost to have a will drafted and then probated. You can find out more in my article, "What Does a Will Cost?"  To speak to a knowledgeable attorney for free about your plan, call;

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
708-529-7794

Oak Lawn Estate Planning | Special Circumstances to Probate a Civil Union

With the passing of the Illinois Civil Union Act, partners may not take advantage of their new found status under the probate act. This advantage comes to play in a number of scenarios. The first of which is if there is children involved. Under the new law, partners under the Civil Union Act have the same rights as spouses under the law. This means that if two incomes were needed to maintain the family, and one partner meets a premature death, the other spouse will have the proper assets to care for their child. The reason for this is that spouses, and not partners, have the privileged of being designated in the primary prefrence category for receipt of assets. A partner would be ensured a primary preference category for up to 9 months and an award of no less than $20,000.00. Partners will also have preference category for being designated as the administrator of the estate. This is wildly different than the previous designation for same sex partners.

The key for couples who have taken advantage of the Civil Union Act is to consult an attorney about the status of their estate planning because there is only a limited number of states that recognize this law. A knowledgeable attorney should be consulted before any move is contemplated. If you would like to find out more about probate or estate planning under the civil union law, call;

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
708-529-7794
www.jwcolelaw.com

Oak Lawn Estate Planning | Did your old attorney really do a good job?

Problem: Your old attorney gave you your estate planning documents and sent you on your way. You have no plan for when you die, just some documents that state who your property goes to upon your death.

Needs: What you needed was a comprehensive plan that includes both a property distribution plan and the methods that that plan can be implemented.

Solution: You need to find an attorney that focuses on more than just a document "pump and dump".

It has been an unfortunate problem that attorneys, particularly older attorneys, have asked some basic questions of clients and then pumped out a will or trust for the client. They have the client come into the office and sing the documents and send them on their way. Often, the client is confused about what this document does and how anyone will be able to use it after their death. Additionally, the attorney doesn't care to help these individuals because she hopes that she will do the probate in the event of your death. What I always tell the Executors of an estate is, "The more disorganized the estate is, the more money I make." This may be why old attorneys simply dump the documents on the client and provide no instruction later. This pump and dump method was par for the course in the old days. Now, clients should expect more. The proper instruction can make the passing of a loved one a manageable process from property standpoint.

You may be asking, what things should my attorney have told me?

 This question is very specific to your situation. People have so many different types of assets and family situations, it would be wrong to try and give a cookie cutter answer. There are some pieces of information that he should have discussed with you which are almost universal to everyone. This type of information makes administrating your estate much easier. I always advocate creating a critical information sheet with your attorney that will be given to the executor that will make their life much easier. This critical information sheet will contain things that would take a good deal of manpower to find and, in some cases, may never be found. A sampling of things that should be included on this sheet would include: passwords to emails, passwords to Facebook, passwords to a blog, passwords to finacial institution accounts, location of keys to lock boxes, listing of all certificate of deposits, listing of all savings/checking accounts, names of brokerage firms, names and numbers of insurance companies, instructions for care of pets, lists of credit cards, etc.

Most Estate Planning lawyers don't even include these things with their documents. This type of estate planning is simply unacceptable. A good estate planning attorney should ensure that they are counselors and not simply a document manufacturer. There is no doubt that a good will or trust makes all the difference in the word in regards to the property going to the proper party and with the least governmental hassle. Why not choose an attorney who makes the hassle on loved ones as small as it possibly can be. After all, is that who you had the trust drafted for anyways.

For more information on getting your Will or Trust, call,

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
708-529-7794
Jonathan@JWColeLaw.com