Build Your Family On A Solid Foundation Of Estate Planning
New and soon-to-be parents in Canadian County have some documents to prepare, and Oklahoma estate planning lawyers at the Legal Advantage Group can help.
Starting a family? You are probably drowning in parenting advice, guides, and to-do lists. You are searching for answers, the perfect way to plan or prepare for this big next step in your life. While the ultimate responsibility of parenting, raising your children, is not one you can find quick, easy answers to, preparing for the possibility of not being around to raise them is one you can.
If some misfortune should befall you, how you have prepared your estate plan (the documents that describe your wishes and handle your assets after death) will shape the rest of your child’s life, but take only a few hours out of your life now to prepare. So, whether you have just learned you are expecting for the first time, or already have a kid or two with or without more on the way, if you have not stopped to take the time to prepare your estate plan, now is the time.
In Canadian County and other neighboring counties of Oklahoma City, young parents can look to estate planning lawyer Dan Loeliger of the Legal Advantage Group for clear steps and easy-to-follow advice on what they need to include. Starting with a clear list of three documents and instructions that your estate plan needs to include if you have minor kids or plan to have children in the near future.
Why Is Estate Planning So Important For Parents Of Young Children?
When you are already drowning in things to do, buy, and change around your house, paperwork might be the last thing on your mind. However, a good estate plan is something every parent needs and hopes never ever to use. But if you are taken from your children too soon, or even incapacitated temporarily by an illness or accident, you’ll want to make sure the law will respect your wishes and that your kids will be cared for.
That is what an estate plan does. By putting your projects, wishes, and safeguards on paper, with a lawyer to ensure everything has been done properly, you ensure the protection of your children. You make sure that those for whom they are placed have the means to meet their needs and the supervision to do so responsibly.
The younger your children are, the more such a loss may impact them, and the longer it will be before they can handle things on their own. Worse still, you won’t be around to see it, and adjust your plans accordingly, so the more detail and effort you put into your estate plan now, the better it will be able to handle unexpected developments and extend your influence, guidance and legacy into their lives and future.
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What Are The Three Main Components Of A Parental Estate Plan?
While you have probably never had to make a full estate plan before, we certainly have, and as your Canadian County estate planning lawyers, we can guide you through the preparation of the following critical components of your plan.
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Your Will (And Guardianship Designation)
The most fundamental piece of estate planning, your will, describes your wishes for who will get what amongst your beneficiaries and assets should you pass away. It can include some additional instructions, but once executed during the probate of your estate, its ability to influence your legacy is over.
One absolutely vital reason to draft one, however, is that it is also the place to put your preference for who should become the legal guardians and caregivers for your minor children. While the preference you indicate in this guardian designation is not binding, a court will have to make that judgment; they will weigh your wishes heavily in their decision if you have clearly indicated them in your will.
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Powers Of Attorney And An Advanced Healthcare Directive
An accident can easily and suddenly take you away from your children, but it can also leave you incapacitated on a temporary or even permanent basis. If you want to have any control over what happens to you and your loved ones after that, you need both powers of attorney and an advanced healthcare directive.
Powers of attorney give a trusted individual the authority to make decisions on your behalf. These could be financial decisions or even medical decisions. Without this, loved ones might have to go to court to get power over your affairs to be able to care for your children.
An advanced healthcare directive, on the other hand, makes your wishes clear for medical situations, such as being incapacitated on life support. Not only will clarifying your preferences mean your wishes will be followed, but it will also help avoid conflict between family members should they disagree.
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Set Up A Trust (Option)
While a will is perfectly adequate for making your wishes clear, it gives very little control over how the money you leave behind for your children will be used. For a more detailed and long-term impact, you want a trust. Trusts work by having a third-party entity hold your money, with a trustee designated to distribute and use those funds according to your wishes and instructions.
This allows you to set aside funds for specific purposes, like a college education, or with certain conditions, which can even extend into your children’s adult lives. This type of estate planning may not be essential, but it might be crucial if you have a vision or values for your children’s upbringing that you wish to encourage or support.
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Call A Canadian County Estate Planning Lawyer To Get Started
Legal Advantage Group | Be prepared for life as a family in Oklahoma
This all might seem like a lot, especially if you are dealing with all the other obligations of parenthood or pregnancy, but it is too important to leave aside and ignore, because by the time you know you need it, it is too late to do it. Fortunately, we can make the process easy for you. Here at the Legal Advantage Group, we have helped countless families in Canadian County and throughout Oklahoma create estate plans that matched their needs and situation.
To start the process and make sure your children will be cared for no matter what, reach out to an estate planning lawyer at our firm for a consultation. You can call or reach out online and get guidance on how to prepare your family for anything.
