As an Estate Planning Attorney, it is my job to create estate plan documents best suited for your family’s needs. And as a mom (my favorite job), protecting kids is a subject that is very close to my heart. So my natural maternal instinct combined with my estate planning experience draws me to young families; to help them figure things out. But more often than not, I find that parents have little or no information regarding even basic legal documents. I want to fix this. (To make it easy, I provide a no-cost informational consultation, and for young parents, a no-cost first basic document …but more on that later).
I have identified ten of the most common mistakes made when planning for the needs of families and estates. This month I’d like to share these with you and offer you solutions to avoid these kinds of errors; so you can protect the ones you love.
I have created a 4-part message campaign this month to get the word out to young parents. So please, pass it on.
Over the years, I have noticed that not only do many young parents fail to have any estate planning in place, but even those that have created a Will or a Trust are often left wildly under-assisted with guardianship nominations and legacy details; important components of estate planning that define the sort of life their children should have.For example, when I ask a young parent: “What would happen to your kids if you didn’t make it home one day?” I note that few have given this enough thorough (or any) reflection. Understandably; it is a hard question. It’s against our nature to think about death or our mortality, and so we avoid these thoughts. Let’s think about that tomorrow. But the truth is… this kind of thinking leaves our kids unprotected.
Your child’s safety and happiness is something that affects every decision a young parent makes. From what car seat to select, to what school they will attend, to what they have for dinner…so many routine things require such careful consideration.
But these choices are easy -and perhaps even fun- to make when compared to the most important (and most difficult) decision of all: thinking through the outcome of what your child’s life would be like if something happened to you, and then drafting and providing clear, thoughtful instructions as to the life you would want for your child if you cannot be there.
So, WHO is the person that you would choose to be responsible for taking care of your children’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs if you aren’t there to do it yourself?
Helping you execute these crucial decisions is where I come in.
Go to www.itrustlaw.com and schedule a no-cost consultation, or call me directly at (559) 635-1775 to schedule an appointment. If you or someone you know is a young parent, please contact me to arrange for the preparation of your first basic document: a FREE guardianship nomination prepared for use in the event of necessity, which will establish your clear intentions, and your choices as to who will raise your children if you cannot be there.