Estate & Legacy Planning

Estate and legacy planning involves making legal and financial arrangements for the management and distribution of your assets, as well as preserving your personal values for future generations. While estate planning focuses on the legal and financial transfer of assets, legacy planning broadens the scope to include intangible values and life lessons. A comprehensive plan incorporates both.

Estate planning

This is the process of arranging for the management of your assets and finances if you become incapacitated and detailing how your property should be distributed upon your death.

Key documents and components:

• Last Will and Testament: A legal document that specifies who will inherit your assets and who will serve as the executor to oversee the process.

• Living Trust: An arrangement that holds your assets during your lifetime. Unlike a will, assets in a trust can avoid the often lengthy and public probate process, saving time and money.

• Power of Attorney (POA): A legal document that appoints someone you trust to make financial and legal decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so.

• Health Care Directive (Living Will): A document that outlines your wishes for medical care and end-of-life treatment. You can also name a health care proxy, or agent, to make decisions for you.

• Beneficiary Designations: It is crucial to ensure that beneficiary designations for assets like life insurance policies and retirement accounts are up-to-date and consistent with your overall plan, as they take precedence over your will.

• Guardianship: If you have minor children or dependents, your plan should name a guardian to care for them and a trustee to manage their finances.

Legacy planning

This goes beyond financial matters to preserve your personal values, beliefs, and life experiences for future generations.

Key documents and components:

• Ethical Will or Legacy Letter: A non-legal document where you can share your values, life lessons, and wishes with loved ones.

• Charitable Giving: Establish charitable trusts, donor-advised funds, or foundations to support the causes you care about, creating a long-term philanthropic impact.

• Family Archives: Cataloging and documenting family traditions, stories, and history to preserve them for the future.

• Family Mission Statement: For families with significant wealth, creating a mission statement can help unify them around shared values and guide future decisions.

How to get started

1. Inventory your assets. Make a detailed list of everything you own, including real estate, bank accounts, investments, insurance policies, and digital assets.

2. Define your goals. Consider what is most important to you. Do you want to provide for your family, fund a charitable cause, or preserve a family business?.

3. Gather important documents. Collect statements for all financial accounts, insurance policies, deeds, and other documents proving asset ownership.

4. Assemble a team of professionals. Most people, especially those with complex assets, will benefit from consulting a financial advisor, estate planning attorney, and tax professional.

5. Create your legal documents. Draft or update your will, trusts, and powers of attorney to reflect your current wishes.

6. Talk to your family. Discussing your intentions with your loved ones can help avoid confusion and conflict in the future.

7. Review and update regularly. Your plan should be revisited periodically—at least every three to five years, or after major life events—to ensure it still reflects your goals and circumstances.