It may not be at the top of your to-do list, but updating your will is a step that you need to take every once and awhile. If you leave your will unattended for years and years, it can leave you and your estate vulnerable to execution problems, such as assets going to...
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Estate Planning
Talk to an attorney when composing your estate plan
Estate planning is very complex, and to properly implement a plan that protects your estate and preserves your last wishes so that your loved ones can thrive after you are gone is a very difficult task to complete -- especially on your own. Estate planning isn't the...
What assets can be transferred outside of probate
In the state of Utah, the purpose of probate proceeding is to enact an orderly process where the assets of a deceased person are legally transferred to other people, usually a person’s heirs and beneficiaries. Order is key in probate, because of the disputes...
Is there an ‘inexpensive’ trust I can utilize?
It would be nice if trusts could be established without a financial cost being attributed to their creation. In reality though, you have to be prepared to spend a little money to protect your assets in a trust. Given this notion, there was a prevailing notion about...
On the probate process, and why avoiding it is ideal
Probate sounds like an arduous process, doesn't it? Even without the context of estate planning, the word "probate" doesn't exactly sounds fun or promising. With the context of estate planning, it is made even clearer that probate is not fun or promising. Probate is...
The special needs trust: what it provides
Last month, we wrote a post about some of the types of trusts that you can utilize to bolster your estate plan. Having a trust is a great way to improve your estate plan, protect your estate from the probate process, and to ensure that your assets are properly handled...
Three common types of trusts, and what they can do for you
Trusts play a vital role in many estate plans. Trusts are utilized to protect certain assets from taxes and the probate process, while also making the execution of an estate plan a bit simpler and efficient. There are many different types of trusts, and so today we're...
Estate planning terminology 101
Just hearing the term "estate plan" can make people shudder. It sounds like a difficult and painstaking process that people would rather just ignore or put off until a later date. While creating and maintaining an estate plan can be difficult at times, it doesn't have...
How a will can be central to an estate dispute
One of the most important documents contained within your estate plan is the will. Your will dictates how your affairs, assets and property are dealt with in the wake of your passing. Without a will, you die "intestate," and your estate is then subject to all of the...
Why even young parents need an estate plan
If you are a parent to young children, then there is no doubt that you are busy. You are probably busier than you have even been in your life, or ever realized that you would be. With meals to cook, rooms to clean, children to chase and work to do, creating an estate...