WHAT IS PROBATE AND IS MY ESTATE SUBJECT TO PROBATE?
“Probate” is a protective, court supervised, legal process established by the state to oversee the settlement of an individual’s estate at death. During this process, “a Personal Representative” is appointed to “administer,” or manage the “assets” of a decedent, who resided and owned assets in Washington. Administration includes: collection and valuation of the estate assets, payment of the decedent’s bills, investigation and settlement of tax issues, and finally distribution the estate according to the terms of the decedent’s Will, or by the state rules of “intestacy” if the decedent died without a Will.
ESTATE PLANNING IS MORE THAN JUST A WILL
Estate Planning involves much more than death-time planning using just a Will – as this planning encompasses planning for lifetime emergencies as well as planning how assets will be distributed at death. In effect, a large swath of lifetime situations should be covered.
REVOCABLE “LIVING” TRUSTS
The most common uses of Trusts in estate planning are: (1) to avoid probate, the court process of settling the estate of a decedent who dies with or without a Will; (2) to provide for deferred distributions to minors and formal management of assets until distribution (Parents often include a “just in case” trust); and (3) to facilitate tax planning for married persons with large estates where trusts for each other can be used to minimize the estate tax payable at the time of the second spouse’s death, as well as to protect the gifts within the deceased spouse’s family line. These are just some of the many reasons for creating a trust.
LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE APPEALS
When someone with long-term care insurance can no longer live independently, they can file a claim to receive the benefits of their policy. However, many families run into unexpected difficulties. Increasingly, we are seeing clients who have spent years paying into a policy, only to be denied help when they need it. When a claim is denied, the insurer provides a basis for the denial.