Wills & Estates
The goals of any good wills & estates practice is to provide you with peace of mind
At Smedstad & Sandstrom, our wills & estates practice is built around the goal of ensuring that your wishes are respected. To that end, we can assist you with every facet of your estate planning, including the drafting of wills, Powers of Attorney, and Personal Directives. We work alongside your financial planners and tax specialists to ensure that your bases are covered. We also assist with administering/probating estates so that you do not need to worry about the hassle of probate, when you should be focusing on healing after a loved one passes away.
Our services
Child and Adult Guardianship
Estate Planning
Probate Administration
Wills
Powers of Attorney
Personal Directives
It is important to consider tax consequences when planning your estate.
Your lawyer can help point you in the right direction so that your estate is tax effective.
You should name a guardian for your minor children.
Typically, your spouse or partner would be your guardian in the event of your death. However, you should also consider naming alternate guardians to ensure that your minor children are looked after.
Typically, beneficiaries are your spouse, children and grandchildren.
Most modern wills have a common disaster clause since extended families often travel together. This ensures that your last wishes are followed. By drafting your will with a lawyer, you are planning for exigencies to ensure that your wishes are followed.
A power of attorney allows an individual you select to have control over your finances in the event you lose capacity to control your own finances.
Your selected individual can use your finances to ensure that you are cared for appropriately. There are different types of powers of attorney, and your estate lawyer should be able to tell you the pros and cons of each.
A personal directive relates to how you want your health care decisions made in the event that you are incapacitated.
Your selected agent will be responsible for acting upon your wishes as they are set out in your personal directive. You can spell out exactly how you want to be treated in the event that you cannot make important health care decisions yourself.
Some things you should know
You should name a guardian for your minor children.
Typically, your spouse or partner would be the legal guardian of your children in the event of your death. However, when it comes to something as important as the wellbeing of your children, you can never be too safe. It is prudent to consider naming alternate guardians to ensure that your minor children are provided for.
A Power of Attorney can protect you in the event you lose capacity.
A Power of Attorney allows you to give control over your finances to a trusted individual in the event you lose capacity, either due to accident or illness. The individual with power of attorney can use your finances to make sure that you are appropriately cared for. At Smedstad & Sandstrom, we can walk you through the benefits and drawbacks of the different types of Powers of Attorney.
A Personal Directive relates to how your healthcare decisions are made in the event you lose capacity.
Your Personal Directive sets out your wishes with respect to your healthcare and directs an agent selected by you to act upon those wishes. You can set out in precise detail how you want to be treated in the event that you lose the ability to make health care decisions for yourself.
There are tax considerations involved in estate planning.
In the course of estate planning, there are a number of tax issues that may arise. At Smedstad & Sandstrom, we can point you in the right direction so that your estate is tax effective.