Hiring an estate planning attorney is not at all an easy task and you need to keep in mind a lot of factors before taking the final step. You need to understand if the attorney can deliver what you are thinking about and if you can communicate your concerns to them. You need to know about their experience level and if they are going to resolve your problems smoothly.
So you can ask the following questions before hiring them.
What is your primary expertise? Is it real estate planning?
Your requirements might not want you to have complex estate plans. You might need simple wills but you need to work with attorneys who are experienced in estate planning. There might arise unexpected complications even in a simple estate and only an experienced planning attorney can help you address the issues.
How many years of experience do you have?
The more number of estates the attorney has documented; the more opportunities they had seen their planning put to action. The attorneys use wills, trusts, health care documents, and power of attorney and revise them dynamically when their clients die. An experienced attorney will have everything documented to meet the requirements post their client’s death.
How do you assist your clients in properly funding assets and turning them into revocable living trusts?
You must communicate with your attorney to understand the level of guidance they can provide you with in helping you assist your trust funding. Many attorneys provide their clients with written instructions and how they can handle the funding process themselves. Others will be walking you through the entire process. As the process can get a lot more complicated, you must work with your attorney in close communication.
Do you have a formal updating and maintenance program?
There are many estate firms and attorneys who at least call their clients and meet them once or twice a year to update them about their programs:
- They inform the clients about any changes that are occurring in the estate law
- New estate planning techniques are explained to them
- They ask the clients about the modifications they need to make in the client documents
- They check the progress of the clients who have been funding their trusts
The Litvack Dessureault LLP trust lawyers are the leaders in inheritance solutions and can help you deal with any disputes and disagreements.