AREAS OF PRACTICE

Estate planning involves the observation, organization, and documentation of a person’s assets while they are alive and how they wish for those assets to be distributed upon their death. Assets can include but are not limited to real estate, personal property (clothes, furniture, jewelry, collectibles, etc.), vehicles, life insurance policies, stocks, bonds, IRAs, and bank accounts. In addition to creating a plan for distribution of one’s assets upon their death, estate planning also involves planning in the event of medical emergencies, financial decisions, incapacitation, and extenuating circumstances presented at the end of one’s life. 

Within estate planning, there are three main documents we utilize to ensure clarity in medical decision making, financial decision making, and the distribution of one’s assets following their passing: a Living Will/Healthcare Power of Attorney, a Durable General Power of Attorney, and a Will.

Living Wills/Healthcare Powers of Attorney

A Living Will (also known as a Healthcare or Medical Power of Attorney) is the document that expresses your wishes in regards to medical procedures or possibilities towards the end of your life. It also lays out a healthcare Agent to act on your behalf once you or your doctor decide you are no longer capable, and a list of successors to this Agent should anything happen to them before you pass. The document lays out potential end-stage medical situations where you can express your specific wishes in regards to each specific situation. This is extremely helpful for your designated Agent and doctors so there is no guess work needed as to what you would have wanted.

Durable General Powers of Attorney

The Durable General Power of Attorney (also sometimes referred to as a Financial Power of Attorney) encompasses a wide variety of financial duties including paying bills, signing checks, investing money, buying or selling real estate and automobiles, making gifts and donations, and some legal matters. This document provides an Agent and list of successors which in cases of need will act on your behalf without advance notice to you or approval by you. While this is a broad reaching document, it does not allow your Agent to do whatever they please – instead, an Agent is required to act in your best interest and good faith, and the courts can take away this power if they find an Agent is acting improperly. Once again, this is a very wide reaching document, so you should be sure to talk to your attorney to make sure you fully understand it and appoint someone you completely trust to act as your Agent or alternate.

Wills

A Will is a document outlining where assets titled in an individual’s name will be distributed upon death. Wills also state who is in charge of the estate once the individual passes, including the duties of dividing personal assets, paying debts, handling taxes, and distributing assets to named beneficiaries. Wills only deal with assets that are in one person’s name. For assets that are jointly titled, such as a house, car, or bank account, regardless of what a Will states, those assets by operation of law will pass to the other joint owner. The same holds true for other beneficiary designations with a named beneficiary like life insurance, annuities, or retirement accounts. With this in mind, the Will is meant to encompass your wishes for your personal assets. We understand that circumstances often change, and because of this recommend that Wills should be updated at least every 5-10 years.

At H.A. English & Associates, we would be more than happy to assist you with all your estate planning needs. For new clients, we send out an Estate Planning Questionnaire to capture a basic sense of your assets and wishes prior to any initial meeting with Hal. Please call our office at 412-486-1923 to be sent this questionnaire either by mail or electronically. Upon receiving your completed questionnaire, our office will call you to schedule an initial meeting with Attorney English to fully understand your needs.