Every adult citizen owning any type and size of property must be aware of estate planning and its importance. To put it simply, estate planning entails the process of inventorying, evaluating, taxing and transferring the property of a given individual to his heirs during his life or after the death while complying with pertaining federal and state laws.
As you can see, estate planning looks like an exhaustive and convoluted process even in a simple description. For that matter, property owners of any sort are advised to hire an attorney with enough relevant experience of dealing with all procedural requirement of estate planning. Let’s see why hiring an estate planning attorney is important.
To deal with intricate estate planning state rules
As mentioned earlier, many things have to be taken care of for devising a fully compliant estate plan. In the US, estate plans are mostly governed by an intricate set of rules prescribed by the state. Let’s have a look at some of the provisions pertaining to estate plans that change with every state:
- The specifications of will, financial power of attorney and trusts
- The eligibility for becoming a trustee, witness, personal representative, attorney, and health care surrogate
- The do and don’ts of signing all the related document
All these requirements are different in every state. Here, we will offer you a sneak peek in Ohio’s rules to make it clear how intricate and conditional the whole process of estate planning can be. For instance, the Ohio law requires that a will from the decedent must be typed or handwritten and bear no fewer than two witnesses.
Estate planning of decedents without a will is governed by different rules. Similarly, unmarried, divorced and people with a spouse have to face different regulations. One can’t have a handle on these rules especially when they are decked with legal jargon. So, leave all of this to an estate planning attorney who is well accustomed to respective state inheritance laws.
To avoid litigation and blunders
Not everything is DIY activity. If you think you can save the lawyer fee by doing estate planning on your own, then you are leaving your kin susceptible to future litigations and troubles. Things can go all haywire even if a single document turns out to be invalid. While dealing with your estate planning, keep the old Latin adage ‘Caveat Emptor’ in your mind.
To iron out warped financial and family situations
There are many family and financial connotations where estate planning doesn’t remain a liner process. To devise an estate plan while ironing out all these knots and twists, you will most certainly need an estate planning attorney:
- When the person is in a second marriage
- When the person owns an estate in more than one state
- When the person has a disabled family member
The above discussion is clearly signaling that an experienced lawyer is a must for estate planning. Wolterman Law Office in Ohio offers experienced legal services for all personal and commercial affairs. You can also contact the office to avail the services of an expert estate planning attorney.