There are 5 documents that every responsible adult needs.  We all know that life happens and unfolds in unpredictable ways and sometimes  events can place us in unfortunate circumstances.
In a nutshell, these documents speak for you when you cant.   These important legal papers let your family and friends know your decisions about critical issues such as: what you want done with your property, how you would like your children to be raised, end of life decisions,  and much more.

Here are the 5 Documents:

• Living Will
• Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare
  
• Financial Power of Attorney
• Will and/or Trust
• List of Assets

Living Will – A living will is a simple statement of what you would like done during the final days and hours of your life.  If you would like to be allowed to die without heroic medical efforts being made to keep you alive then a living will is an important part of your medical chart.

A living will is limited. It only controls your medical care when you have an incurable illness or injury that will lead to your death over the next few hours or days. If you are seriously injured but are not likely to die from your injuries then your doctor and your family will look to your power of attorney for healthcare for guidance.

Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare – A healthcare power of attorney is more powerful than a living will. The living will is a piece of paper containing a brief statement of your end-of-life wishes. A Power of Attorney allows you to choose a person who will stand in your place, to talk with your doctors, and decide what care you should receive. The person named to make decisions is called an “agent.” Getting copies of medical records has become particularly difficult in the last few years. The Power of Attorney for Health Care also allows your agent to access your records.

Financial Power of Attorney – This document allows you to appoint someone as your agent.  Your agent can go to the bank for you and can make financial decisions on your behalf. Your agent will also be able to talk with utility companies (phone, light, gas) and conduct other business for you.

List of Assets – To make things easier on your family it is important to have a written record of what assets you have and where they can be found. It does not do any good to have a millions dollars in the bank if your family does not know you have it or which bank it is in.

Will - A will is instructions to the probate court. It tells the judge who should receive your property, who should raise your young children, and who should act as your representative in court. A will must be filed in the court after a person dies. The court would then have control over how assets are handled.

Trust – Your trust controls your property when you are incapacitated and after you are gone.  It can help insure that your children or grandchildren stay in school, help them open a business, and help carry out any other special plans you have. It is designed to do all of this without the need to go to court. This will likely save time and money for you and your loved ones.

Here is how to contact me anytime.

My office phone is (773) 905-1193

My office is located at 9924 S. Walden Parkway, Chicago, Illinois 60643

You can contact me instantly by e-mail at: tom@mytrustlawyer.com

5 Important Benefits of a Will

A will does 5 very important things. 

• Cancels your old will.
• Names a personal representative (executor).
• Waives the bond on the personal representative.
• A will can act as a back-up document to a living trust.
• Names a guardian for minor children and for special needs children.

There are several ways to cancel your old will. You can tear it up. You can burn it. You can write “revoked” across the pages or draw large X’s on each page. The most common way is to write a new will. The first paragraph of your will normally revokes all of your former wills.

When your will goes to probate a person is put in-charge of the paperwork. This person is called a personal representative. They may also be called an executor. Most people have someone in-mind for the job. Your will should name a personal representative and a back-up in case your first choice is not available.

A bond is an insurance policy that guard against mismanagement or dishonesty by your personal representative. It helps make sure that assets that end up going through probate will not be stolen or wasted. Since many people name their spouse or a trusted family friend as their personal representative it seems unecessary to require that person to be bonded.

Every Living Trust should be accompanied by a short will, know as a “pour over will.” This legal document is set up to make sure that assets are put into the trust if the Grantor did not get them into the trust during their lifetime.

The most important job that your will does is to name a guardian for your minor children or for children with special needs.  If you do not name a guardian then the court may need to appoint one. Most people tell me that they want to make these choices rather than leaving them up to the Judge in probate or guardianship court.

The Important Role of Life Insurance

There are certain things that life insurance does better than any other product.  When there is a need for cash at the moment of death there is no better way to provide it.  

Life insurance is a great way for young parents to create an estate.  They can provide for the future needs of their children in a way that would be impossible without life insurance.

Life insurance can provide estate liquidity.  When a person dies often their income stops.  Their death cuts off the family income just at a time when financial demands increase following the death of the bread winner.  A life insurance program can provide the needed liquidity to allow the family to stay in the family home where it might otherwise need to be sold to meet a sudden increase in expeses coupled with a sudden loss of income.

Life insurance can help pay estate taxes that may be due a few months after the date of death.