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Estate Planning for the New Year

New Year's is not only a time for travel and reflection, but a time for planning.


When you look at your family plan what do you see? Are you comfortable with how you've handled your own estate planning, asset protection, and planning for your vacation? Now is the time to review and renew your contract to yourself, your kids and your family.New Year's is not only a time for travel and reflection, but a time for planning.


I'm here to help. If you have questions, I've placed some thoughts below, but I welcome you to email me.

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Happy New Year,
Steven M. Adler

Consider Your Estate Plan Before You Travel

We are fast approaching the holidays, when travel is the busiest and careful planning is necessary to nab the best airfare or book that New Year's beach cottage before it slips away. One thing that is probably not on your travel to-do list is estate planning, but it should be so you can travel with peace of mind.

Family

Here are some tips to pack away your worries before you board that flight:

Complete your estate plan. If you've been putting it off, now is the time to complete your estate plan. If money is a consideration, then start with those the most important items: a will, power of attorney and advance health care directives.

Update an existing estate plan. Has something changed in your life since you last updated your estate plan? A birth, a death, a marriage, a divorce? Each of these triggers your need to update your estate plan.

Establish guardianship for minor children. If you have ever gotten a nagging fear about what would happen to your children if something were to happen to you, then use that fear to follow through on naming a guardian for raising your minor children. If you have young kids, there is never an excuse for you to neglect this important step.

Review beneficiaries. Beneficiaries of your retirement accounts, life insurance and other assets must be kept current or your assets will not pass to them upon your death. If you have minor children, you will need to set up a trust and name the trust as beneficiary so your assets can pass without court intervention.

Review/update incapacity documents. Two very important health care documents - a durable power of attorney for health care and a HIPAA Authorization - will determine who can make medical decisions for you and who has access to your medical records in case of incapacity. Be sure you have these documents before you travel and that the person/people named are still valid.

Review/update insurance. Does your life insurance coverage still meet your family's needs? If not, it is time to update your insurance policy before you hit the road.

In addition, you need to be sure you have an organized file of all your accounts and estate planning documents and you need to tell your family where they can locate the file if and when it becomes necessary.

The time to create a plan that spells out how you will pass on your values, beliefs and your money to your children is now. You can begin by calling our office today to schedule a time for us to sit down and talk. We normally charge $500 for a Family Wealth Planning Session, but because this planning is so important, people who mention this article when they make their appointment, shall receive a complete planning session at no charge.

Please feel free to contact us to further explore.

Caring for Your Children When Accidents Happen

A Will May Not Be Enough

If you have a family with young children, then you need to make sure that you plan for their well-being if something happens to you and your spouse. You may have already created a will or trust, yet this may not be enough to guarantee that your children are taken care of by the person of your choosing. Many estate planning attorneys do not take your family into consideration, but only plan for the future of your assets.

If you don't plan in advance, then a number of unfavorable situations could occur.

  • Your children could be given to Child Protective Services. Even if this is a temporary situation, you don't want your children to be surrounded by strangers, no matter how short the time period may be.
  • Your children may be caught in the midst of a custody battle among family members. A judge who isn't aware of your personal feelings may grant custody to someone that you would never want to raise your children.
  • Your children may lose out of the assets that you've left them. If your estate has to go through probate, then your children will be deprived of money that has gone to court fees.

Make sure that you are fully-prepared so that these situations don't happen. Create a Kids Protection Plan that will ensure that your kids are safe and in custody of a person that you personally selected!

Please feel free to contact us to further explore.

Let's Lighten The Mood

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What Our Clients Are Saying

Steven assisted my wife and I with our Will and long term Living Will. He made the entire process stress free and was able to put our minds at ease. It was a pleasure to work with someone as professional, trustworthy and helpful as him. I look forward to working with Steven again and highly recommend his services to anyone in need of an attorney."

- T.D.

Click here to read more testimonials and reviews of our law firm on Stik.com

About Adler Law

Adler Law are committed to providing their clients with the highest level of professional legal services at reasonable prices. Steven M. Adler, Esq., along with the rest of his law firm's highly competent support staff, gives all of his clients the personal attention and the legal expertise which they are entitled to receive. Adler Law takes pride in the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of their legal services. See Our Attorney Profiles

Adler Law

390 N. Broadway, Suite 200

Jericho, New York 11753

Phone: (516) 876-1105

Fax: (516) 441-5095

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