When you are getting ready to make important estate-planning decisions, it’s good to have an estate planning attorney with you. An estate-planning attorney is an individual who provides legal representation to people or groups who have questions about estate planning, wills, trusts, and other important decisions that affect the people they love. An estate-planning attorney can help you decide what those plans should be, help you fill out the documents properly, explain the consequences to your beneficiaries, and even work with you to establish a trust to protect your assets in the event of your disability or death.
If you have questions about wills, you should have your estate-planning attorney to look them over to make sure they are both proper and current. Your will contain a durable power of Attorney for finances, a healthcare power of attorney for medical decisions, and even one for healthcare decisions – if it makes sense for your particular situation. In addition, your attorney can help you establish a trust and sign checks for your beneficiaries. (Be sure to use a qualified, trustworthy trustmaker; these are some of the most difficult people to trust.)
An estate-planning attorney in Seattle can also assist you with a complete and comprehensive estate plan, which can cover everything from how you want your funeral arrangements to be handled to your beneficiaries and what kind of education and support they may need as you pass away. For example, will you want to be buried or cremated? What kind of final arrangements do you want to make? A comprehensive estate plan can help you make the most important decisions about your last wishes and distribute your assets according to your decisions when you pass away.
When you decide to hire an estate planning attorney in the Seattle area to help you with your estate-planning needs, it is crucial that you make a point of getting several quotes from different attorneys. Get a feel for how much they charge and how many appointments and/or paperwork they will have to complete for you. The more personalized your attorney is with you the better you can get a feel for who is best to handle your affairs. Also, ask them to give you examples of previous client relationships for reference.
You may also want to consider asking your Seattle estate planning attorneys about their websites. This will give you access to resources and informative articles that you can access on your computer or through their website. Many of the online tools available for will consumers be provided by these highly trained legal professionals. These online tools are also very useful in determining your eligibility for different kinds of legal aid and legal assistance programs that are provided in the state of Washington.
Estate-planning attorneys in Seattle are also very helpful if you are dealing with probate issues. The probate process allows you to get the last wishes of someone who has died to be fulfilled before you take away their assets. If you are having a difficult time organizing your assets or just don’t feel that you are qualified to make the final decisions about your family’s future, you may need to get a referral from your estate planning attorney. Some people may need to get a referral from the attorney because they are dealing with a difficult probate case or they have a complicated issue that only a professional can help resolve. However, there are many other reasons why an estate planning attorney may refer a potential client to another qualified attorney.
