Too many family members find themselves dealing with complex problems after a loved one passes away. This can include issues such as intestate succession when a person dies without a will. When the state takes over, any personal wishes you might have had about your estate will be overruled. Check out the Massachusetts Degrees of Kinship Chart.
Estate planning refers to the process of documenting your wishes in your will, and in other estate planning documents about how reality will happen when you pass away. Most people think about estate planning as only answering the question “what happens to my property after I die?” but the truth is that there are many issues that may crop up over the course of your life requiring you to have other estate planning documents in place.
Without these you leave the responsibility to the court to make decisions for you. For example, without a power of attorney for health care or finances, your loved ones will have to go to court to be approved to make decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. While the chances of this happening seem to be relatively low, suffering in a car accident, or even going through a temporary disability or surgical recovery period can make this a reality.
Having the right attorney help you with your estate plan means that you have a clear perspective on what is accomplished and can understand how to move forward with your next steps. It can be overwhelming to think about estate planning in the broad sense, but the support of an experienced and dedicated estate planning attorney in Massachusetts can make this a much easier project to tackle.
