Wills, Trusts, Probate & Estatе Planning

Anderson, Reynolds & Lynch, P.C. provides a broad range of legal services, advising clients on the importance of Estate Planning and Probate Administration.

Wills and Trusts

At ARL our Estate Planning attorneys assist clients with the development of their Wills, which provide for the distribution of property upon their death. Wills vary in complexity and can be used to achieve a wide range of personal, family and tax objectives. A “Simple Will” provides for the outright distribution of assets, while a “Testamentary Trust Will” creates one or more trusts upon death.

Here at ARL, we take pride at doing all we can to making the future easier for you and your family and giving you peace of mind protecting your assets. We do this by preparing the following documents with your instructions:

• Health Care Proxy
• Appointment of Conservator in the Event of Future Incapacity
• Power of Attorney
• Springing Power of Attorney
• Memorandum of Instructions Regarding Personal and Household Effects
• Living Trusts
• Special Needs Trusts
• Beneficiary Designations
• Business Succession Planning

Alternatively, if probate assets are left to a preexisting inter vivos trust created during lifetime, the Will is known as a “Pour Over Will” and the receiving trust is often referred to as a “Revocable Living Trust.” The purpose of these preexisting inter vivos trusts or those created by a Will is to ensure continued property management, divorce and creditor protection for the surviving family members, protection of an heir from his or her own irresponsibility, provisions for charities, and/or minimization of taxes.

Based on the client’s unique situation, ARL can assist in creating a variety of trusts, including the following:

• Revocable Living Trusts
• Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts
• Charitable Lead Trusts
• Charitable Remainder Unitrusts
• Dynasty Trusts
• Generation-Skipping Trusts
• Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts 4938-1390-3727, v. 1
• Qualified Personal Residence Trusts
• Spousal Estate Reduction Trusts

Estate Planning

Wealth and asset preservation involves a wide variety of individualized issues and tasks. At ARL, the majority of services we provide our clients are in estate planning, probate settlement and the continuous management of trusts. At ARL, our estate planning clients and their families are generally represented for years. Some of the duties we perform as estate planning attorneys are as follows:

• Initial meeting to gain information and set goals and objectives – At our client initial meeting(s), our estate planning experts will gain insight into your estate and begin to gather information about our client’s family and assets, as well as the specific goals and concerns that the client has regarding the distribution of his or her estate.
• Estate Planning Counseling and Preliminary Recommendations – In our initial meetings, we will also inform clients on the estate and gift tax system that often dictates much of the tax-planning structures of the estate planning process. We will also advise our clients on other issues that may impact on how the estate plan is formulated.
• Developing a Customized Estate Plan – Once the information has been gathered from these initial meetings, our lawyers will meet with the client and present an estate plan that offers the options for meeting the client’s objections. This allows the client to provide feedback to the estate plan, afford further discussion and thereafter customize the estate plan to the specific goals and preferences of the client.
• Drafting Estate Planning Documents – Once the client has determined his/her estate planning objectives, our lawyers draft the necessary documents needed to put the plan into effect. We then hold a meeting with our client(s) to make sure he or she fully understands the documents and executes signatures. Our attorneys take as much time as they need to make sure our clients understand and can ask questions about the documents he or she is signing.
• Providing Ancillary Services – Over the years, our lawyers may perform a number of services as part of this continued process. When we are Trustee or Executors, we may assist clients in need of managing their day-to-day lives and their finances as simple as bill paying or selling a car. We continue to counsel our clients as needs arise and in changes in the laws that may impact estate planning. Further, as client’s family and or financial situations may change, we help our clients to adjust their estate plan accordingly.

Probate Administration

It’s always hard when someone you love dies and then you need to know what needs to be done next.

Let ARL help you with Probate process. We can help you with the appropriate Probate steps and filings that need to be done by preparing the following appropriate documents with your instructions:

• Preparation and filing the Petition for Administration or Probate of a Will
• Take possession and safeguarding of any property or assets
• Recording the Notice for Land Records/Appointment of Fiduciary
• Preparation and filing of an Inventory
• Pay/settle any debts, claims and/or expenses
• Preparation and filing of the necessary estate tax returns
• Preparation and filing of a Final Accounting
• Obtaining the necessary Lien Release
• Distribution of Asset

Let ARL make this process easier for you during this difficult time.