Southbury Wills Lawyer

Southbury Wills Attorney

It may be uncomfortable for some people to think of death, but the reality is that estate planning is a tremendous service to your family. A properly constructed estate plan can help your family resolve the financial aftermath of your death more easily and greatly reduce the chance of conflicts arising. An experienced Southbury wills lawyer at Burns Thomas, LLC, can assist you with creating a legally enforceable will to provide you and your family with peace of mind.

Experienced Legal Counsel for Will Creation in Southbury, CT

The attorneys at Burns Thomas, LLC, have the skills and experience you need from an estate planning attorney in Southbury. Our team has successfully helped many past clients create comprehensive estate plans, and a last will and testament is one of the most crucial components of anyone’s estate plan. When you choose us to help you create your will, you will have a dedicated legal advocate ready to assist with every step of the process.

A will is a legal document that conveys your wishes for distributing your assets to your beneficiaries after your death. Unfortunately, many Americans do not understand the value of having properly constructed estate plans or have not taken steps to create their own plans. Recent data shows that only about 33% of Americans have estate plans. Meanwhile, 35% of Americans report experiencing family conflicts due to deceased loved ones not having wills or estate plans.

Some people create wills and estate plans but do not take steps to make sure that their chosen executors are aware of their responsibilities. Less than 50% of executors are aware of a will, meaning it can easily come as a major surprise for someone to learn that they have been selected as a loved one’s executor or estate administrator.

More than 30% of the population of Southbury is over the age of 65, and while this demographic is typically the most concerned about estate planning, starting sooner rather than later is always advisable. It is possible to customize your will in various ways, and your finalized will should be one component of a comprehensive estate plan. Your Southbury wills lawyer at Burns Thomas, LLC, can help you feel confident with your plan.

Building a Will in Southbury

Writing your own will should be considered a starting point, not a firm solution to estate planning. Taking time to write down your preferences for distributing assets to your beneficiaries after your death is a great way to begin the estate planning process, but courts are unlikely to honor most self-written wills. Additionally, if you use any software programs or “free” online tools to write a will, courts are also unlikely to honor wills made in this fashion.

If you do not have a will in place at the time of your death, your estate will enter probate. This is a notoriously tedious and time-consuming process that unfolds according to the state’s laws of intestate succession. Essentially, if you do not name beneficiaries, your assets will be distributed to your beneficiaries based on Connecticut’s intestate succession laws. This can easily lead to disputes as these laws do not take unique family dynamics into account.

During probate, the court will review the contents of the deceased’s estate, assess their outstanding debts, and resolve payments to creditors before distributing the remainder of the deceased’s assets to their beneficiaries. Probate is often contentious as family members may disagree with the court’s decisions. They may argue about which assets should go to which beneficiaries, and this can easily turn into a stressful, protracted legal battle in the family.

Taking time to create a legally enforceable will with the help of a Southbury wills lawyer can make probate much faster and simpler for your family. Additionally, this can lead to lower legal expenses for them, reducing the cost of resolving estate administration. Your will can also eliminate, or at least reduce, the chance for conflicts to arise between your beneficiaries.

A will can not only dictate how your assets will be distributed to your beneficiaries but also explain your preferences when it comes to guardianship of minor children or adult children with disabilities. The team at Burns Thomas, LLC, can work closely with you to explain what your will can cover and how to construct it as efficiently as possible.

Whether the best option for you is a comprehensive will, the establishment of trusts or other estate planning solutions, we will find a solution that fits your needs.

schedule a consultation

Creating Your Estate Plan in Southbury

A last will and testament can be a valuable asset to your family and greatly reduce the stress they will face in the aftermath of your death. However, it is a good idea to consider your will as just one component of a more comprehensive estate plan. The attorneys at Burns Thomas, LLC, can also help you with many other aspects of creating this plan:

• We can help you draft your advanced medical care directive. This document can provide instructions to your family when it comes to the medical intervention you would like to receive for emergencies, end-of-life treatment, and other situations in which you may not be able to answer medical questions for yourself.
• Our team can create a durable power of attorney, which will designate a chosen personal representative to have the authority to make legally binding decisions on your behalf should you become incapable of doing so.
• A trust is another flexible option for customizing an estate plan. Trusts can be configured in different ways to meet your needs and expectations. You can potentially save your family from facing probate at all and take advantage of valuable tax benefits with the right kind of trust.

Ultimately, your will is one of the most important components of an estate plan. While it can be valuable on its own if you have the right attorney to help you create it, it’s a good idea to consider the additional steps you can take to further enhance the legal benefits for your family. Burns Thomas, LLC, can take time to learn as much as we can about your situation, your concerns for estate planning, and your goals for the future to develop the right plan for you.

It is never too soon to start creating your estate plan in Southbury. The right attorney can be an invaluable asset for this process, and Burns Thomas, LLC, is ready to help. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with an experienced Southbury wills lawyer and learn more about the estate planning services we offer.