Estate Planning

North Carolina Estate Planning Attorneys

The best gift you can leave your loved ones is a comprehensive, legally sound will and other instructions that avoid confusion between family members and ensure that your assets and property are distributed the way you intend - not the state or IRS. Contact a North Carolina estate planning attorney at Kelly & West for personal service and a clear explanation of the benefits and consequences of the many instruments available for protecting and transferring your assets after death.

Wills. A North Carolina will is a legally binding document that determines the distribution of assets and property after death as well as the care of minor children. Legal advice during the preparation and execution of a will can ensure that the will itself and the distribution of assets it describes are enforceable.

Living Will. Also known as an advance health care directive to physicians, a living will allows you to specify the extent of medical treatment or life support you should receive in a final illness or permanent state of incapacity. A living will that clearly expresses your specific intentions for treatment under extreme circumstances will spare your family from disputes and speculation about your preferences, while avoiding the agony of suspending life support without a clear understanding of your wishes.

Powers of Attorney. A power of attorney designates a trusted individual to make important decisions on your behalf. A health care power of attorney differs from a living will in that it authorizes a particular person to make medical treatment decisions for you. This document can contain the same language as a living will and perform both functions. A financial or durable power of attorney authorizes a particular person to make financial decisions on your behalf in the event of your own incapacity to manage your own banking or personal business affairs.

Taken together, the above estate planning instruments comprise a complete estate plan sufficient to meet the needs of many families. But families with enough assets to make estate tax planning a serious concern might also consider the formation of trusts as an essential feature of their estate plans.

Trusts are a way to transfer assets from personal ownership while retaining the benefit of the asset. When assets are held in trust at the time of death, they are not part of the decedent's estate and they are not subject to distribution under the will. The main purposes of transferring assets into trust are to minimize current tax liability, shelter assets from estate taxes, avoid the probate process, preserve confidentiality, or make sure that the assets are managed by someone better qualified to handle them than an heir.

Examples of trusts that meet one or more of these objectives are A/B bypass trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts, inter vivos or revocable living trusts, credit shelter trusts, or charitable remainder trusts. An alternative means of achieving many of the same objectives is to form a family limited partnership or LLC to serve as the owner of valuable assets that might otherwise be subject to estate taxes.

For additional information and a free consultation about your family's estate planning needs, contact a knowledgeable wills and trusts lawyer at Kelly & West in Lillington.