Did you know that if you do not pre-plan, your estate will go into Probate after you pass on? And while you will not be here to deal with the hassles, your loved ones will. Probate is a complex and complicated legal proceeding where the courts determine how to handle your assets and other affairs after you pass. As you may suspect, the court does not have your best interests in ensuring that your assets get distributed as you would want.
Not only does your estate become a public record with Probate, but anything you wanted to remain private, may not be.
Estate Planning Attorney Mindy Felinton says:
“When it comes to creating an Estate Plan, one factor you might not have considered is privacy. Even if you have a Last Will and Testament, your estate could be settled and distributed in Probate court, which takes a long time, can be very expensive, and everything involved becomes known to the public.”
Felinton advises that you can create trusts, which will eliminate the need for Probate court involvement and efficiently speed up your assets being distributed to those you want. Your family and heirs can take care of everything, and your assets remain your private business. Trusts can include Revocable, Irrevocable, and Testamentary Trusts. Each one comes with its own differences that can help you and your individual needs and situations.
To determine which type of trust can work best for you and your situation, an estate planning attorney can help you decide which type of trust can work best for you.
With over 30 years of experience, attorney Mindy Felinton provides customized estate planning services to fit you and your family and will be there to guide you every step of the way. Felinton Elder Law & Estate Planning Centers is located in Maryland and Florida and provides estate planning services to families in Rockville, Maryland, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties.
Give Mindy’s team a call at (301) 610-0055 or (561) 290-2179. Mindy has offices both in South Florida as well as in Rockville, Maryland.