Estate Planning refers to the wide variety of documents and processes that are completed in an effort to arrange assets in a way that makes their owners confident that their assets and loved ones are taken care of, should they pass away. Common estate planning documents include Trusts, Wills, Deeds, and Powers of Attorney, among others. Each estate plan at Willockx Law is individually crafted to allow our clients unmatched peace of mind.

Yes! All consultations and estate plan reviews are free. Please contact our office to set up a consultation for a new estate plan or to review your existing estate plan. Cost of services is determined after the consultation and/or review takes place.

Unique situations include planning for stepchildren, special needs care, issues surrounding LGBTQ families, guardianships, and more. All of these situations require you to take special care and consideration. Major life changes can also impact the estate planning process. Major life changes include: the birth or death of a family member, marriage, divorce, a change in assets, and many more. At minimum, your estate plan should be reviewed every five years and each time a major life change occurs.

A trust allows you to account for all passing assets using one document and one central coordinator (or more, if you prefer). It is an agreement between a Settlor (the original owner of the property or assets) and a Trustee (the person managing the trust). There are many different kinds of trusts and many different ways to arrange them. Meeting with an attorney is the best way to evaluate which type of Trust, if any, you may need.

The definition of Will is “the declaration of a person’s wishes regarding the disposal of his or her property after death.” Wills do not avoid probate.  They are used during probate to transfer assets.

Powers of attorney go by many names.  At their essence, powers of attorney allow the person named to have a degree of control over your affairs.  In the context of estate planning, they are commonly used to allow others to make medical and/or financial decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so.  They can be very limited or very broad.  Being married alone does not give your spouse the right to make these decisions, so it is a very important part of an estate plan.

Probate is the process by which a deceased person’s assets are divided among that person’s heirs (or others). It involves paying off the deceased person’s debts, transferring assets, sending notices, and a lot of paperwork. Clients usually want to avoid probate because it takes a great deal of time and money, and it is public record. In addition, there are cases in which heirs cannot agree, which increases probate costs and makes it more likely that the court will make the decisions for the clients. Proper estate planning can avoid probate. If you believe you need to probate a deceased loved one's estate, we can help! Please contact our office for a free consultation.

We specialize in estate planning, but our office offers limited business planning as well. Please contact our office about your business planning needs and we may be able to help!

Costs are determined after a consultation. Each estate plan and probate case is unique, so the costs vary. Our office bills in flat fees rather than hourly rates. Click here for more information about our process.