March 9, 2017

Approaching the topic of death is never easy, but it might help to reframe the estate planning process by viewing it as your way to leave behind a legacy and a love note for your family. The truth is that you may get more peace of mind from knowing that you have taken the right steps to protect your loved ones if you were to pass away suddenly. It’s often hard enough for family members to go through the grief process, but that experience can be amplified when your loved ones are unclear about the intentions of your estate planning.

Beyond serving as crucial legal documents, your will and trust documents can help you articulate your individual legacy and to communicate your concern and love for your family members. Unfortunately, most people don’t even realize the challenges that may arise without a will until it’s too late. Witnessing a friend or family member working through the will or other estate conflict can give you a firsthand perspective of all that can fall apart without proper planning.

And yet, people don’t take the necessary steps because they don’t believe it will happen to them or because they assume it’s too complicated. Up to 60% of most adults in the U.S. don’t have a will. When it comes to Millennials, those numbers are even worse: only one in five has a will. A will is the basic cornerstone of the estate planning process, but it does not address what happens if someone becomes incapacitated while they are still alive.

In the event of a sudden disability or an accident that takes you out of commission for making your own decisions for even a short period of time, your power of attorney documents can make things easier for your loved ones by informing them about which person is responsible for making those decisions. A family member seeing you unable to make your own decisions is an emotional process and one that you can make easier by articulating your concerns on paper well in advance. Since your loved ones will have enough to worry about during that time, make the process easier on them by meeting with your estate planning attorney today.