At Alperin Law, our estate planning attorneys have worked with enough individuals to know that no two people are alike in their desires for the future and their needs for asset protection. One thing everyone has in common, however, is the need for some kind of an estate plan. Whether you are young or old, have children or not, have a few thousand dollars to your name or millions, are married, widowed, or divorced, now is the perfect time to meet with an attorney to discuss your unique estate planning needs.
How Can Our Estate Planning Attorneys Help You?
The term “estate planning” encompasses a wide array of tools and services to protect your assets, property, dependents, and yourself when facing an uncertain future. The goal of any comprehensive estate plan is to meet the following important objectives:
Distribution
When it comes to your hard-earned assets, you want to be able to decide who gets what and when they get it. Without an estate plan, the law will inevitably make these decisions on your behalf, but will your wishes be honored?
Management
If you become incapacitated or pass away, you want to make sure that medical, financial, and childcare decisions are made by someone you trust to honor your wishes. With an estate plan, you can name a person you trust to handle this for you.
Preservation
Without proper planning, legal fees, taxes, creditors, and unscrupulous family members can chip away at the assets you planned to leave to your loved ones or charitable organizations.
We can help you organize your estate to meet all of these objectives, giving you the peace of mind that only a solid estate plan can give.
What Services Are Provided By Our Estate Planning Attorneys?
From simple wills to a variety of different kinds of trusts and important medical planning, our team does it all. A few of the specific services we provide include the following:
Traditional Estate Planning
Wills, revocable trusts, powers of attorney, and advance medical directives are a few of the legal documents we customize for you as part of a traditional estate plan. Even the most modest estates can benefit greatly from these tools, which are designed to protect your assets and ensure that the right people are making important decisions for you and your family when you are unable to do so.
Advanced Estate Planning
Not everyone needs advanced tools such as irrevocable trusts and advanced tax planning, but when you have considerable assets, you should take these steps to preserve your assets for distribution as you choose and protect them from probate fees, taxes, court costs, and more.
Probate And Trust Administration
If a loved one’s estate has to go through probate, we can help you with the administration of the process. Going through the probate process is lengthy, expensive, and public. Because of this, many people choose to avoid probate. We can give you several legal strategies that will allow you to pass property after you die without requiring that your estate goes through probate.
Charitable Planning
Many people choose to donate a portion of their assets to charity upon their deaths. We can help with charitable planning by establishing private foundations and charitable trusts while saving you taxes.
Special Needs Trusts
If you have a child with special needs, planning for how they will be cared for after you’re gone will be at the top of your estate planning priorities. Through a special needs trust, we can help you protect assets for your child while preserving eligibility for government benefits and services.
Guardianships And Conservatorships
If you have minor children, it is vital that you name a guardian and that this decision is reviewed on a regular basis. For adult loved ones with physical or mental limitations, we can help you petition the court to have a trusted guardian appointed for life care decisions and to establish a conservatorship in order to manage their finances.
There are other tools and strategies available for estate planning in Virginia, and we will discuss all of the options that make sense for you when we meet.
Special Estate Planning Considerations for Seniors
Alperin Law also practices the specialty area of estate planning known as elder law. In this related practice area, we help retirees and the elderly protect their assets from the high cost of assisted living and nursing home care while helping them obtain affordable medical care when they need it. Through Medicaid planning and identifying applicable benefits such as Veterans Aid & Attendance, we can help you get the care you need.
Don’t Hesitate to Contact The Estate Planning Attorneys Of Alperin Law
Wherever you live in Eastern Virginia, our comprehensive estate planning services are available to you. We serve all communities in Eastern Virginia, including Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Newport News, Isle of Wight County, Hampton, and the Eastern Shore. Call to speak to one of our experienced estate planning attorneys today.
