As you begin the new year, are you thinking about the resolutions you set for 2023? Did you include being sure you and your family are prepared for whatever the future holds by creating an Alabama estate plan? We want you to know that we believe that one of the most important New Year’s resolutions you can make this year is to create your Alabama estate plan.  With your Alabama estate plan in place you can protect yourself and your loved ones both during your life and at the time of your death. During your lifetime, by working with your qualified Alabama estate planning attorney, you can create a plan that ensures your choices for your health care and finances are honored by your chosen decision maker.

As the year 2022 comes to an end, have you given any thought to long-term care planning? Have most of your family and friends either passed away or moved? Is your health good or have you had any health scares this year? Have these health scares during the past year caused you to think about where you want to live as you age or what might happen if you had a health crisis or even how to protect your legacy?  We understand that as you age, you want the best for yourself, so learning about long-term care planning before you need it is a great idea. 

As you think about your future, if you became incapacitated due to an accident, surgery or disease what would happen? Who would make your healthcare decisions, pay your bills, or keep an eye on your house? What would happen if you needed extra care to remain in your home or you needed a nursing home? Now is the time to plan, before a crisis occurs, and while you can make decisions for yourself.  By working with an experienced Alabama elder law attorney you can have the peace of mind to ensure your lifetime of savings is protected from your long-term care needs. 

When you locate, make an appointment and meet with an Alabama elder law attorney, how do you even begin the conversation? What should you talk about? Where should you start?  In our firm we understand you questions because most of our clients have these same questions and we know that long-term planning can be complicated. We would like to share an end of the year long-term care planning checklist that you may use as you think about long-term care planning before the end of the year.

Did you know that according to research many people put off making an estate plan each year? What about you, do you have an estate plan? If you do not, you are not alone. 

There are multiple and varied reasons why people put off creating their Alabama estate plan. Some put it off because they think they do not have enough assets and others think they are too young to even consider it. There are people who do not want to think about dying and avoid creating an estate plan. People who are not married and have no immediate family, may not feel a need to create an estate plan at all. 

Do you currently have a trust or are you thinking about adding one to your estate plan?  Were you aware that some trusts do fail? To begin, a trust is a legal document that you can place your assets in to be managed by a selected trustee for the benefit of the trust’s beneficiaries. There are two essential components to a trust.  First, there is the trust itself, which is created through a legal document that identifies the purpose of the trust, the trustee of the trust and his or her powers, the beneficiaries of the trust, and the requirements for distributing the trust assets to the beneficiaries. The second component of the trust is the “corpus” of the trust, or, the sum of money, accounts or property placed into the trust.

With the arrival of the new year and as the month of January gets underway, did you know many people in Alabama are focusing on how they will reach the resolutions they set?  What resolutions did you set? Did you focus on work or health or family or all three?

Can you believe that in just a few short weeks, it will be 2022? The end of the year is quickly approaching. We realize that the pandemic continues to add a layer to everything but, for most of us, we are busy finalizing our end of the year plans, purchasing last minute holiday gifts, and making arrangements to spend time with family. As you reflect on your goals for the coming year, this is the perfect time to take stock of what has happened this year.  What went well? What could we improve on?

Estate planning is critical for anyone who wants to help ensure their wishes are respected in the event of temporary incapacitation or upon their death. Despite the important role estate planning plays in our lives, did you know less than 50% of Americans have an estate plan in place? This is a terrifying statistic when we know just how important making a plan is for your future, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

None of us know what tomorrow might bring and having an estate plan that you develop with your estate planning attorney can provide security. Do you already have a plan in place? Don’t forget you may need to update it. In fact, when you regularly update what you have put in place with your attorney you can help ensure that security will continue.

A prenuptial agreement is an agreement entered into between future spouses regarding ownership and distribution of their present and future assets. Have you thought of a prenuptial agreement as a plan for divorcing even before the marriage takes place? A prenuptial agreement, however, can be a very important legal tool for couples in certain situations, including in the context of estate planning.  

A prenuptial agreement does not just set forth how assets will be distributed upon divorce, it may also address the distribution of assets upon a spouse’s death.
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Does your out of state move involve a to-do list a mile long? It often does. If you are moving out of state, does your checklist include updating your estate plan? It should. Let us discuss the key reasons why you need to update your estate plan when you move to a new state.