You’re an adult – what now?
18 years old is an incredibly significant milestone in your life!
In less than a week, we loaded up and move our daughter to college. It’s only 90 miles away, but she is the first to make this move for us. While the move is only 90 miles, a much bigger legal move took place that puts her much farther away from us than ever before. We (her parents) lost a lot of rights and access to our daughter’s life that prevented us from being able to help her the way that she and we wanted to. It’s important to know this information – before you need it!
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Life Planning Articles
Estate Planning Solutions: What is a Trust?
When building an estate plan, there are two main documents that you generally need to consider: a will and a trust. As we have previously discussed,1 a will is important for establishing a firm legal precedent for how you want your various assets to be handled. For some, it is the ideal option for handling… Read More...
Comparing & Contrasting A Living Will & A Last Will
One of the many challenges of estate and life planning is that there are many documents that seem similar but serve very different purposes. For instance, it is easy to confuse the terms living will and last will and testament, but they are completely separate legal documents that meet different needs. As such, it is… Read More...
Considering End-Of-Life Care: What Is An Advance Health Care Directive?
Nobody particularly likes thinking about death, but it presents a lot of questions that need to be answered, especially when it comes to how you or your loved ones want to be treated near the end of your life. You might think that you’ll be fine leaving it to the decisions of your doctors or… Read More...
Estate Planning Essentials: What Is a Durable Power of Attorney?
As a person ages, their ability to make important decisions can become less clear. Additionally, they have a far greater chance of experiencing some kind of health situation in which they cannot voice their own wishes. In these scenarios, there needs to be someone in place who can make decisions for these people and act… Read More...
The Second Sting: Dying without an Estate Plan
Passing away without a Will compounds the pain of loss with the pain of uncertainty and unintended consequences.
Three Key Differences Between A Living Will And A Last Will And Testament
Often, the terms “Living Will” and “Last Will” are used interchangeably, but in actuality, they are completely different legal documents that serve separate purposes. So many people have heard “you need a Will.” Unfortunately, it is not clear what that means, which document someone might mean, and the actual process to put a “will” in… Read More...
Do I Need Probate?
One of the common questions I get is “Do I need Probate when someone dies?” There is also the question “What is Probate?” When someone dies, there is a flood of emotions. In addition, there is concern regarding what needs to happen, worry about things to do, and confusion. In my upcoming eBook “What to… Read More...
Major Life Events Means It’s Time to Create A Will: Marriage, Divorce, Adoption
A will is considered a type of legal document that provides instructions on how to distribute your assets upon your death. If you die in Indiana without a will in place, Indiana intestate laws will determine who inherits all of your assets depending on their relationship to you. Accordingly, if you have certain distribution goals… Read More...
5 Essential Documents and 5 Essential Questions
Many times, people believe an estate plan is accomplished with a “Will.” Many do not know or understand why. Additionally, they do not know that a “Will” is not enough, and, in fact, may not be necessary. “You know, you need to get a Will.” “Make sure you have a Will.” “My wife and I… Read More...
You’ve Got the Power with a Power of Attorney
Indiana Elder Law Planning: Power of Attorney versus Guardianship – You can pay now (and pay less) or you can pay later (with more cost and time required). In this rapidly changing world, many people find – too late – that a doctor or a bank requires legally appointed authority to act. A person can… Read More...