Estate planning allows you to lay out what happens with your assets after your death: how your property will be distributed and what you will provide for your loved ones. The process can also help set up a plan that designates the party responsible for providing financial and medical assistance for you following your death. Is estate planning really necessary? Without proper estate planning, your family may face substantial difficulties along the way. Consider these reasons why proper estate planning is critical to your family’s future.

1. Estate planning allows you to designate who can make decisions for you if you cannot make them for yourself.

Many people have a highly developed idea of what they would like to happen at the end of their lives. You may, for example, want to make use of every medical possibility to prolong your life for as long as possible; or you might prefer to avoid extensive measures past a certain point in your life. If something happens and you cannot make those decisions for yourself, you may want to designate a specific individual to make those decisions for you.

As part of your estate planning, you can set up a medical power of attorney that will allow the person you choose to make decisions for you. For most married people, their spouse will automatically get that right if they cannot make decisions on their own. You may, however, want to designate someone else to make those decisions–or you might want to designate which one of your children you want to be responsible for making those decisions. An advance healthcare directive can also help set out exactly what you intend to happen in certain medical situations, making your wishes clear.

Likewise, as you age, you may lose the ability to continue your own financial management. Many elderly individuals choose to designate a financial power of attorney: someone who can handle their finances, pay their bills, and help them stay financially stable even as they continue to age.

2. You may need to take a fresh look at your life insurance policies.

Your life insurance needs may change dramatically at various points throughout your life. If you have a spouse and a young family, for example, you may need to make sure that your life insurance will provide adequate support, especially if you have a spouse who will have to go back to work or find childcare for your children after your death. As you age, you may want to take a look at how your life insurance policy will help pay for your funeral and burial expenses.

Likewise, you may need to consider who will receive the benefits from your life insurance policy. For example, if you have been divorced, your former spouse may still be named the beneficiary on your life insurance policy. You may want to designate your children as beneficiaries as they age, or change the provisions when you no longer have minor children. At each stage of life, reexamining those benefits can help you choose the life insurance option that works best for you.

3. Estate planning can help you designate what you want to happen to your children if you pass away before they are of age.

As part of your estate planning, you will need to designate who will get custody of your minor children if you die. Most parents do not want to think about the possibility that their children will be left with no one to care for them, but you do not want the decision made by the courts, who do not know you or your children. Without a will, however, the court will be responsible for deciding what happens to your children, and your wishes may not be taken into account. As you handle estate planning, you can select who will receive custody of your minor children if you die. You can also help make provisions for those children financially, whether you choose to provide money to help their guardian raise them or you want to set aside money in trust for them when they reach adulthood. This provision can prove critical to your family’s future, especially if you pass away before your children reach adulthood.

4. Estate planning now can help reduce arguments after your death.

All too many families find themselves split apart by arguments surrounding the disbursement of a loved one’s possessions. Even the most loving family can wind up arguing over who deserves what or what cherished possessions they should get to take. Your will, however, can help reduce many of those arguments. Through your will, you can set out exactly what you intend to happen to your money and possessions after your death, which can help reduce squabbling.

5. Creating a living trust can make it easier for your loved ones to take possession of your assets after your death.

In many states, moving the deceased’s assets through probate can take a long time. A living trust may still require some time for transfer of assets, but it can streamline the process and make it easier for everyone involved. Your living trust can be altered as long as you live, whether you want to add assets, remove them, or change beneficiaries. It can still take time to settle a living trust. Your beneficiaries may need several months, and need to handle accounting fees, before they take full possession of your assets. The living trust, however, can streamline that process and help them avoid probate, which can prove time-consuming and frustrating.

Whether you have been putting off estate planning and recently recognized how important it is for your family’s future or you need to review your will, living trust, or medical directives to ensure that they meet your current needs, working closely with an attorney can make the process easier. Contact  Stephenson, Chavarri & Dawson, L.L.C. at 504-523-6496 to schedule an appointment to start working on your estate planning needs today. It’s never too early to start preparing for your family’s future!

With so much uncertainty right now, it is natural for people to consider getting their affairs in order, specifically making sure their loved ones are taken care of, and their assets are protected. Even though estate planning should be a top priority at any time, with the world battling COVID-19, it is more important than ever to settle your accounts during these unprecedented times.

Our legal team at Stephenson, Chávarri & Dawson understands that this challenging time has brought with it many worries and as a result, a high number of last-minute Wills.  That is why we have made it a point to help families and individuals in Louisiana finalize their estate planning needs while ensuring that each gets the professionalism, experience, and turnaround time that they want. In this blog post, we will explain in more detail what estate documents you should be considering right now and how COVID-19 has brought some significant changes to Louisiana’s estate planning rules.

What Estate Planning Documents Do You Need?

What’s great about estate planning, is it can be as detailed as you want it to be.  However, our law firm recommends that, at a minimum, the following estate planning documents should be created.

  • Wills or a Trust
  • Healthcare Power of Attorney
  • Durable Power of Attorney
  • Health Care Directives or a Living Will
  • Guardianship Designation (if you have a child)
  • HIPAA Authorization

Wills

A Will is a legal document whose primary purpose is to express a person’s desires of how their property will be allocated upon their death and which individual will manage the property until it is distributed. In addition, a Will may also legally specify certain provisions ensuring that their partner receives all of their possessions. During this COVID-19 emergency, certain aspects of creating a valid Will have changed in Louisiana, and it is important to understand these updates:

Does Louisiana require the Will to be witnessed?

Yes, the best practice is to sign your Will with two witnesses. However, the state also allows a Holographic Will to be admitted into probate court. A Holographic Will is an alternative to a Will produced by a lawyer, and it is handwritten and signed by the Will maker without witnesses.

Does Louisiana require the Will to be notarized?

Yes, a notary is required unless the Will is Holographic. A notarization is extremely beneficial to show that the Will is legally valid.

Does Louisiana allow for remote witnesses and/or a notary?

In general, Louisiana does not allow for remote witnesses and or a remote notary. However, due to the COVID-19 emergency, the state has issued the  Executive Proclamation 37 JBE 2020 which provides for remote notarizations in certain situations and when the following elements are met:

  • The individual creating the Will, any witnesses, and the Notary has to be able to communicate simultaneously by sound and sight through an electronic device or process at the time of the notarization.
  • The Notary has reasonably identified the individual creating the Will.
  • The Notary or an agent of the Notary has to create an audiovisual recording of the notarization. This recording must be retained for a period of at least ten years from the date of execution unless the Louisiana law states otherwise.
  • The individual creating the Will, any witnesses, and the Notary must affix their digital signature to the act in a way that makes any subsequent changes or modifications apparent.
  • This waiver for physical presence cannot be used when notarizing trust instruments, testaments, donations inter vivos, matrimonial agreements, or specific acts modifying, waiving, or extinguishing an obligation of final spousal support and authentic acts.

Trusts

A trust is a three-party fiduciary relationship where the first party, the settlor, or the trustor, transfers their property on to the second party for the benefit of a third party, or the beneficiary. These trusts are created to provide legal protection for the trustor’s assets and make sure they are distributed according to their wishes. Trusts not only help save time and reduce paperwork but in some instances, they can even minimize estate taxes. Some important legal aspects to consider when creating a trust include:

Does Louisiana Require a Trust to be Notarized?

In Louisiana, notarization of trust is only required if transferring real property. And even though the Executive Proclamation 37 JBE 2020 has allowed remote notarization in certain situations (as indicated above), it, unfortunately, does not apply to executing a trust. According to the proclamation, trusts are part of the exception and cannot be created using remote notarization.

Healthcare Power of Attorney

Another important legal document that you should consider is the Power of Attorney for Health Care. As this virus continues to spread, it has resulted in many people becoming critically ill and many others dying. That is why it is so vital to have this document in place right now as hospitals will usually look to your specific designee in your Power of Attorney to take control of your health care if you cannot do so yourself.

As you can see from the information listed above, there are many specifics that come into play with an estate plan, and we have only begun skimming the surface. If you are considering an estate plan, it is crucial to discuss these documents with a knowledgeable estate planning attorney. These lawyers can go over your individual goals of what you want to accomplish with your estate plan and help you carry out these particular desires.

Why Call Stephenson, Chávarri & Dawson, LLC?

When it comes to issues involving taking care of your family and loved ones, we know that they need to be handled with the utmost vigilance, respect, and dedication.  With over 50 years of combined experience, the legal team at Stephenson, Chávarri & Dawson have served the diverse legal needs of countless individual clients, families, and businesses, ensuring that each gets the attention and the representation they deserve.

With all that is unknown right now, do not let the stress of not having things in order get you down. Instead, if you are looking to create your own estate plan, contact us through our website or give us a call at 504-523-6496 to schedule a consultation with one of our experienced lawyers.

 

When the time comes in your life that a family member you love is incapacitated or can no longer make important, legal, financial, and medical decisions, you want someone to act in their best interest and follow their wishes. Designating a power of attorney is a crucial action that some people never do, or they wait until it’s too late to act. You can ensure that you can act on your loved one’s behalf when the time is necessary by helping your family member designate their power of attorney. Technically, you do not need a lawyer, but it’s in everyone’s best interest to have an attorney draw up the necessary paperwork to ensure it’s properly drafted and executed.

This guide provides a broad overview of power of attorneys in Louisiana, why you should have a lawyer help you draw up the necessary paperwork to help your loved one, and some common questions associated with your responsibilities as the power of attorney for a family member.

What Is a Power of Attorney?

If you’ve watched television or movies, you have at least a rudimentary understanding of power of attorney. Yet, Louisiana is different from every other state because it has a civil law system as opposed to common law. Power of attorney is a common law term; under Louisiana civil law, mandates and procuration are the correct legal terms. A mandate authorizes you to perform specific acts for your family member; you can think of a mandate as a limited power of attorney. A procuration is a broader authorization that you can think of as a general power of attorney. Family members who have power of attorney in Louisiana often fall under the procuration umbrella.

When Do You Need Your Family Member’s Power of Attorney?

Many scenarios arise where your family member will benefit from you having their power of attorney. In most cases, families plan ahead to prepare for the future possibility of debilitating illness, terminal disease, or accidents resulting in mental incapacitation. It’s in everyone’s best interest to take estate planning seriously and designate a power of attorney, but some scenarios urgently require action:

  • Families of service members must help their active-duty member designate power of attorney to make financial and legal decisions during deployment. Additionally, active-duty service members risk injury during deployment, so they need to assign their power of attorney to a loved one to make crucial decisions about medical treatment.
  • Families of those who work in high-risk careers also need to be diligent about helping their loved ones designate their power of attorney, especially with regard to medical care. Examples include police officers, agricultural workers, construction workers, and offshore workers in the Gulf.
  • Families of those who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease help their loved ones designate power of attorney because of the imminent loss of mental capacity. Planning while your loved one still has the ability to make decisions allows your loved one to share their wishes with everyone involved and designate their power of attorney to someone they trust.
  • Some individuals choose to designate their power of attorney to a family member for business purposes or convenience rather than an immediate medical or professional need. Your loved one might want you to handle financial transactions or legal issues.

Why Should a Lawyer Help My Loved One Designate Their Power of Attorney?

On the surface, you might think designating a power of attorney simply means having your loved one sign a form that assigns you or someone else as their agent, so a lawyer is unnecessary. Estate planning attorneys who draft mandates and general powers of attorney in Louisiana play a critical role in protecting the rights and wishes of your loved one. Fill-in-the-blank forms you find on the internet do not provide the customized language the document should provide to meet your family member’s specific needs and wants.

Specific considerations lawyers make when helping draft powers of attorney include:

  • A power of attorney document, especially a mandate, specifically outlines the powers an agent has such as buying and selling property, paying debts, making medical treatment decisions, making gifts, designating beneficiaries. The wording in the document is significant to its interpretation when executed. In some cases, your family member’s power of attorney document won’t be legally binding if the language isn’t right.
  • A power of attorney can immediately take effect or execution can occur when your loved one becomes incapacitated, known as a ‘springing’ power of attorney. Lawyers help clients determine the exact conditions required for execution and place the appropriate language in the document.
  • Sometimes people want to designate more than one person or agent. The wrong language can lead to unneeded family drama and do-it-yourself forms leave massive gaps for interpretation. A lawyer clearly outlines each person’s responsibilities and what should happen if one or all agents cannot act as a result of death or their own incapacitation.
  • Lawyers help your family member properly execute their power of attorney so it’s valid. In Louisiana, all power of attorney documents must be notarized.
  • As mentioned above, Louisiana law differs from every other state. There is a good chance any power of attorney forms you find on the internet will not work in Louisiana. Slight differences in the civil code make it a poor choice to trust form documents from the internet. Consulting with an experienced estate planning attorney will ensure your documents conform to Louisiana law.

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney to Help Your Family Member

The experienced estate planning attorneys at Stephenson, Chávarri & Dawson have drafted countless powers of attorneys for clients and guided them through the proper execution of the document. We take careful measures to craft a customized, legally binding document that helps your family member put trust in another when or if they become incapacitated because of work, illness, or disease. Contact us today online or at 504-523-6496 to discuss your estate planning needs with a member of our skilled legal team.

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