Services

Wills & Trusts

Wills

The steps provided below will help guide you through your Will and Estate planning process.

Free Consultation

Start by having a simple conversation with me where we get to know each other better. Tell me about yourself, your family, your career, and your loved ones. During this time, we can also review your questionnaire, as well as discuss your goals and objectives. It is also a great time to ask me any questions you may have. My job is to listen to your needs and provide you with simple solutions to protect the ones you love.

Discuss Options and Start Drafting

In this step, we start to have more advanced discussions about your estate planning, and start drafting your documents. We will discuss issues such as choosing health care and financial decision makers should you become incapacitated. We will also discuss setting up meetings with other professionals such as your accountant, financial advisor, and life insurance agents. This process will help us design a comprehensive plan that will help you protect the ones you love.

Review and Sign

Next, we will have a final meeting to review and sign your documents. We will also make sure that any Trusts you created are properly funded. At this meeting, I will also present you with a complete organized binder containing all of your estate planning documents.

Follow Up Questions

A lot of thought and effort that go into preparing a comprehensive estate planning package. It is normal after you get home and have more time to reflect on your documents,  to have additional questions. Please feel free to call me anytime after you receive your binder to discuss any questions  or concerns you may have.

Life Happens

We all experience transitions in life. Families grow, we experience the loss of a loved one, new friends are made, new pets are brought into the home, and new relationships are formed. I strongly recommend that my clients review their estate planning documents during these times of change. Of course, I will always be available if you have questions or would like to discuss making any changes to your estate planning documents.

As always, I wish you peace, health, and much happiness!

Protecting Those You Love

Gregory Law can provide simple answers and solutions to difficult questions you may have about your estate. I can also help you design a simple estate plan by creating documents that are easy to understand so you can protect the ones you love. The initial consultation is always free with no obligation, and clients are always quoted a fixed fee prior to the commencement of any services.

Trusts

A Trust-based estate plan may be beneficial under the following circumstances:

You want the details of your estate to remain private.

You want your beneficiaries to receive their gifts quickly without going through probate.

You have beneficiaries who are minor children.

Someone in your plan has a disability.

You have an otherwise-capable family member or friend who would benefit from the protection of inheriting a trust.

You’re concerned about incapacity.

You own a business.

You don’t want to pay estate tax on your life insurance. 

You own real estate in more than one state.

You have a history of charitable giving or want to include charities in your plan.

You own multiple properties and/or rental properties.

Types of Trusts

Revocable Living Trust

A Revocable Living Trust is designed to allow for the easy transfer of the trust creator’s  assets while bypassing the often complex and expensive legal process of probate. Living Trust agreements designate a trustee who holds legal possession of assets and property that flow into the trust for the beneficiaries. 

The trustee can even be the owner of the Living Trust while they are alive. Common items put in a living trust our homes and automobiles but it can include other assets with the exception of cash.

Another benefit of a Revocable Living Trust is that the trust creator can remain in control of the assets during their lifetime. This gives the trust creator the freedom to add or remove assets from the trusts as they desire during their lifetime.

Trust for Minors

A trust for minor children is often established so that if the parents are not around to provide for the child, the child has a source of income and assets necessary to survive. The trustee  is often empowered to use the income or principal of the trust  to pay for education, medical, and living expenses. The balance of the trust may be paid out to the children overtime when they reach certain milestone birthdays such as 21, 25, and 30. However, the ages the children receive the trust is up to the trust creator.

Trusts for Children can provide numerous advantages such as protection from divorce and creditors as well.

Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust

An Irrevocable Life Insurance (ILIT) is a trust that cannot be rescinded, amended, or modified, post creation. The primary assets in this type of Trust are term and whole life insurance policies.

An ILIT is often used to set aside assets for certain purposes, such as paying estate taxes, because these assets themselves are not taxable. In order to do this, the selected assets must be moved into the life insurance trust at least three years before they are used. If properly structured, the death benefits paid to the ILIT will be free from inclusion in the gross estate of the insured.

Pet Trusts

Revocable Pet Trust is a legal arrangement that specifies how your animal companions would be cared for and taken care of financially if you pass away, or if you become ill or disabled and can no longer take care of them yourself.

With a Pet Trust You can name a guardian for your pets and provide that guardian with instructions and money to take care of your pets.

Gun Trusts
A gun trust is a unique type of revocable living trust that specifically allows individuals to use, acquire and transfer firearms. These trusts are customizable and typically are designed to address how an individual will manage their firearms during their lifetime if they were to become incapable, or upon death.

 
The individual who establishes the gun trust can add or remove co-trustees to use and possess the NFA (National Firearms Act) firearms for the duration of their lifetime.

 
When the ownership of your NFA firearms is under a gun trust, any co-trustee can take possession of your NFA firearms to hold them on your behalf. A gun trust allows you to retain ownership of your firearms, allowing you to direct that the NFA firearms are sold with the cash returned to you, or that they continue to be held in trust so that the beneficiaries inherit them when you die.
 
Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the gun trust agreement, the NFA firearms that are registered to a gun trust are passed to the designated beneficiaries outside of the probate process.

 

Special Needs Trusts

A special needs trust is a legal arrangement that allows a physically, mentally disabled or chronically ill person to receive income without reducing their eligibility for the public assistance disability benefits provided by Social Security,   Medicare or Medicaid.

 

 

Protecting Those You Love

Gregory Law can provide simple answers and solutions to difficult questions you may have about your estate. I can also help you design a simple estate plan by creating documents that are easy to understand so you can protect the ones you love. The initial consultation is always free with no obligation, and clients are always quoted a fixed fee prior to the commencement of any services.

Free Consultation

That's right - a free consultation from a licensed attorney. About time, right?

Call or Text

585-500-1844

Email

gregory@thegregorylaw.com