Probate and Estate Planning Attorneys in Gresham
Elder law is about making plans and choosing who will carry out your wishes. Each of us needs to plan ahead to protect our loved ones after we die. By leaving a Will, you leave formal instructions that direct your family or friends on how you wish to divide your property. Whether you need help with setting up your will or help executing it in Probate, our attorney Nathan Begley can provide you with the assistance you need.
"Death is not the end. There remains the litigation over the estate."
Ambrose Bierce
Probate
The probate process can be very difficult for families. It’s hard to lose someone you love and then deal with all the financial and legal complexities resulting from probate. We seek to streamline the probate process and make it as simple, efficient, and understandable as possible – while protecting our clients by making sure all legal requirements are met
Wills
A Will designates who will receive your assets, who will handle your financial matters after your death, what will happen with your pets, and perhaps most importantly, who will raise your minor children. The Will also can waive the requirement that the Personal Representative post a bond, which can save significant money in administering your estate. (Having a Will, however, does not avoid probate.)
Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney to empower someone you trust to help with your finances and make other decisions for you during your lifetime if you cannot handle these responsibilities yourself.
Advance Directive
An Advance Directive for Healthcare Decisions sometimes called a Living Will, designates a representative to make medical decisions when you cannot speak for yourself and/or to outline what type of care you want during certain end-of-life situations.
Burial Instructions
Burial Instructions or instructions for the Disposition of Remains can provide direction if you do not trust your next of kin to carry out your wishes.
Beneficiary Designation
Beneficiary Designation on bank accounts, life insurance, retirement benefits, etc. may help completely avoid probate, depending on your assets.
Trusts
A Trust is another tool used in some estate plans. When our estate-planning clients ask about setting up a trust, usually they are talking about creating a revocable or irrevocable living trust. Creating a living trust involves setting up a legal entity (the trust) that will own your assets and designating someone (a trustee) to manage those assets during your lifetime and after you have passed away. While you are capable, you can serve as your trustee. A key benefit of having a Trust is that it can help you avoid probate.
Conservatorship & a Guardianship
Though conservatorships and guardianships are similar, they offer solutions for different issues. A guardianship allows you to make personal and healthcare-related decisions for an incapacitated adult while a conservatorship grants you the right to manage a financially incapable person’s money, property, and finances.
Conservatorships are often granted to help protect people who make bad investment decisions, who have fallen victim to financial scams, or who fail to pay their bills. Guardianships are established for people who have been deemed incapable of making or communicating decisions regarding their basic health and safety.