The future belongs to those who prepare for it.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Estate Planning?
Learn What An Estate Plan Can Do For You
When property passes through probate, you incur executor’s fees, attorney’s fees and court costs, all of which can be quite substantial depending on the size of your estate. These are fees generally set by state law and are usually based entirely on the size of the estate being probated rather than on the amount of time and work involved. There may also be additional extraordinary expenses of probate (i.e., tax returns, life insurance, etc.).
All of these fees and expenses can significantly reduce the estate to be distributed to your beneficiaries.
With a Revocable Living Trusts (“RLT”) these fees and costs can be greatly reduced. Your assets are transferred immediately to your designated beneficiaries outside the court system and in accordance with the directions specified by you in the trust agreement. Costs of administration of a living trust are minimal and are generally based on the actual time and/or services required.
When a will goes through probate, the court freezes the assets and asks anyone to come forward and contest the will if they please. Creditors are invited to come forward with their claims and heirs may challenge certain bequests under the will if they are disappointed because they received less than they had anticipated.
With a living trust, however, assets are not frozen and can be distributed to your designated beneficiaries immediately without the highly technical and public requirements of probate.
A disgruntled heir would have to hire an attorney and file a civil suit against each beneficiary to stop distributions. In addition, you can protect a distribution to a beneficiary from being reached by the beneficiary’s creditors, from alimony attachments, and even from the beneficiary him/herself.
For married couples, the estate tax liability which would otherwise be due at the death of the survivor can be greatly reduced or completely eliminated by proper planning. This is particularly important in states that impose their own estate tax, and do not provide the “portability” currently available under federal law. This planning can be accomplished in a Revocable Living Trusts (“RLT”) (although it can also be accomplished through wills, this would require a separate probate at the death of each spouse). How much can be saved depends on the size of the estate and the estate tax laws at the time of the surviving spouse’s death. At the same time, the trust can also insure that the estate of the first spouse to die will ultimately go to his or her children (or heirs) even though the surviving spouse is provided the lifetime economic benefit of all assets and has complete management and control over the entire trust.
Why Plan with Us
In-Home Appointments &
Will Execution Ceremonies
Our firm's extensive network of attorneys allows us to offer convenient In-Home Appointments and Ceremonies. This service is popular with our clients who prefer to do their estate planning with an attorney in the comfort and privacy of their own home.
Free Consultations
We want to help everyone.
Competitive Pricing
Our firm has powerful software that has made the process more efficient. We pass this savings on to our clients. Most of our clients are able to purchase flat fee packages which also saves money. These packages include all the documents that are needed to complete most Estate Plans.
Complete Trusts Package Includes
Revocable Trust
Trust Synopsis (in plain English not legalese)
Pour-over Will(s)
Certification of Trust
Durable Power of Attorney for Business Affairs
Health Care Proxy
Form Letter with Instructions for Distribution of Personal Property
Declaration of Community Property (where appropriate)
Instructions for transferring assets to Revocable Trust
Burial Instructions
Unlimited consultation with Estate Planning Attorney
In-Home Execution Ceremony
Wills Package Includes
Durable Power of Attorney for Business Affairs
Health Care Proxy
Form Letter with Instructions for Distribution of Personal Property
Summary cover letter explaining documents
Burial Instructions
30 Minute consultation with Estate Planning Attorney
In-Home Execution Ceremony Available upon request
A Revocable Living Trust
A Revocable Living Trust is a trust created during your lifetime which is fully revocable and amendable by the creator.
A revocable living trust has three primary participants
The Grantor
The Grantor
This is the individual or couple who creates and funds the trust.
The Trustee
This is the individual, couple or institution that holds and manages the assets that are in the trust.
The Beneficiary
This is the person(s) for whose benefit the trustee holds and manages the trust assets.
Attorney Anthony Chachere Dow
Protecting You, Your Family and Your Wealth
I consider it one of my greatest privileges to be able to help families and individuals with their estate planning. Whether I'm working with young parents who want to protect their children, mature couples looking to protect their hard-earned assets, or people facing a difficult and unanticipated health crisis-- I see my clients as friends. In fact, developing meaningful relationships with my clients is what I value most about my work.
I started this area of practice when I saw again and again the heartache, confusion, and panic that can occur when folks do not have basic estate planning documents in place. I wanted instead to focus on prevention. Knowing that most people avoid estate planning because of the hassle and cost involved, I decided there had to be a better way.
By using software specifically designed for estate attorneys we are able to produce documents in a fraction of the time, it makes the process convenient and simple!
I pass these savings on to my clients in the form of lower rates for Estate Planning packages.
When I'm not practicing law I'm usually spending time with my daughter and Great Dane
