Tag: guardianship

Why Estate Planning Is Especially Important for Women

July 11, 2010 /

I love perfect timing!  I read through a recent blog post by Danielle G. Van Ess, a colleague of mine and fellow Wealth Counsel member, that fit right in with my ongoing blog series introducing estate planning.  I started the series by looking at how critically important estate planning is for various family types and situations such as parents with minor children and professionals.

Well, Ms. Van Ess recently wrote a blog post on how vital estate planning is for women (read it here) based on a Forbes.com article.  I strongly encourage you to read her post and the Forbes article – the information is too vital to pass up.  Although Massachusetts and Michigan laws may differ, many of the concepts mentioned in the articles are the same.

I won’t rehash the post or article here, however I do have a couple of thoughts to share:

  • The importance of adequate life insurance on BOTH parents cannot be overstated.  The vast majority of families  I meet with are under insured by any measure.  And I typically find that mom is more likely than dad to be under insured.  Ms. Van Ess points out the importance of life insurance for stay at home moms.  Just think dad – if something happens to mom, you are doing to have to stay home with the kids, hire in-home help or pay for daycare.  How would that financial change affect YOUR family?  Talk to your life insurance agent or financial adviser to make sure you are adequately insured.  If you would like suggestions on who to contact, just let me know.
  • Don’t underestimate your importance in putting a plan in place for your family.  I can count on one hand the number of times we’re contacted about estate planning by dad.  It is almost always mom.  You play a vital role as the key decision maker for planning.  Make sure the decision of how you plan and who you work with is the best for your family.

Do you have stories to share about the importance of the estate planning for you and your family?  For your mom, sister, aunt or friend?  Please share.  I always enjoy hearing about others’ experiences.

Michael Lichterman is an attorney specializing in estate planning and helping provide peace of mind to families and businesses throughout Grand Rapids and West Michigan.  He specializes in “whole family wealth” planning for professionals with minor children, doctors, nurses, lawyers, and the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children) – and does so from a Christian perspective.  He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.

National Article on the Dangers of DIY Estate Planning

July 5, 2010 /

I recently read this article from U.S. News & World Report on the Dangers of DIY Estate Planning.  I think the article is well written and does a good job of representing both approaches – DIY or work with a lawyer.  I, of course, believe the better option is to work with a lawyer.  And specifically with one who focuses on estate planning.  There are many nuances and, like the article says, each individual and family is unique – think of them each as snowflakes . . . none are the same.

I have consistently recommended against DIY estate planning solutions except under a few, specific circumstances.  My reason for sharing the article is to give you an unbiased opinion on the topic from someone other than me.  I encourage you to read it.  The are only a couple of items I think need clarification:

  • I think the following statement is misleading: “all the legal assistance money can buy didn’t help Michael Jackson get his affairs in order before his unexpected death.”  If you’ve read about his estate and the effort (or lack thereof) that was put into it, you quickly realize that, although he could afford “all the legal assistance money can buy,” he did not use it.  He had a surprisingly small amount of estate planning, especially given the size of his estate.
  • Even Legal Zoom acknowledges (via their own study) that only 25%-35% of parents have named guardians for their children and yet they treat it like any other estate planning decision.  This is by far THE most important estate planning decision for parents with minor children and it deserves proper counseling (yes, attorney and counselor at law is my title) to help them reach the decision on who should care for their children if something happens to them.  The decision is too important to leave it undecided or poorly executed.
  • It CAN be worse than doing nothing.  I know of one case where a parent inadvertently disinherited their child – ouch!

So, what do you think of the article?  What are your thoughts on DIY estate planning versus working with a lawyer?  What is it that you don’t like about working with a lawyer?  Please share.  I am constantly looking to improve how I and other estate planners can better serve families.

Michael Lichterman is an attorney specializing in estate planning and helping provide peace of mind to families and businesses in Grand Rapids, Grandville, Cascade, Forest Hills, Ada, Byron Center, Caledonia, and the surrounding areas.  He specializes in “whole family wealth” planning for doctors, nurses, lawyers, other professionals with minor children, and the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children) – and does so from a Christian perspective.  He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.

Why You Should Care About Estate Planning: Professionals

June 13, 2010 /

Moving along in my Intro to Estate Planning series, we will continue to look at why planning is important for  family of different types and at different life stages.  I started by uncovering the many benefits estate planning holds for parents with children under 18.  If you are a parent with children under 18 years old and still have questions, contact me to have your questions answered.

The next group we’ll look at is more of a “type” of family rather than a stage of life: professionals.  My definition of a “professional” is broad, including doctors, lawyers, certified public accountants (CPAs), accountants, bankers, financial advisers, nurses, teachers, middle- to high-level company managers, CEOs, company Presidents, and other similar positions.  I view this group so broadly because they all share similar concerns, at varying degrees.

Some important reasons proper estate planning is critical for professionals (and their families) include:

  • Guardianship remains one of the most important reasons to estate plan if you have children under 18 years old.  Without designating who you want to raise your children in your absence, a court will decide who will care for them. If you haven’t named guardians for your children, you should run, not walk to an attorney specializing in estate planning (and focusing on guardianship decision).  If you have named guardians, you most likely made at least 1 of 6 common mistakes.  Contact me to learn more!
  • Asset Protection. As a professional with a special skill, you face a greater threat of liability.  You have worked hard to accomplish great things and are building a secure financial future for your family.  Don’t leave it exposed to future divorce, lawsuits and creditors.  And this pertains as much to you as it does to your children and grandchildren (and on down the line).  You can pass your financial wealth on to them protected from divorce, lawsuit and creditors as well.
  • Planning for your incapacity to avoid bitter conflict about your finances and your health care. You need to give people you trust the legal authority, guidance and direction on how to handle your finances and your health care.  Enhanced Powers of Attorney, EnhancedPatient Advocate Designations, and Living Trusts are key components to making sure your wishes are recognized and followed.
  • Avoiding probate.  Without a proper plan in place, your hard earned wealth will go through a time consuming and often costly court process. Wouldn’t you rather your family be able to benefit right away and receive more of what you worked so hard to accomplish?
  • Passing on your “whole family wealth,” not just your money.  This includes your values, insights, stories and experiences – who you are and what is important to you.  In my experience this is THE most overlooked part of estate planning.  The professionals I’ve worked with have accomplished a lot and continue to reach new levels of accomplishment.  Yet in most circumstances they have not taken the time to explain their struggles, how they overcame, and what they learned – these are far more important than money to their kids, grandkids, and future generations.

These are just a few of the reasons professionals need an estate plan.  Can you think of more?  Please share your thoughts and experiences.

With my next post in the series, I will look at the “sandwich generation” – people who have concerns about their parents and their children.

Michael Lichterman is an attorney specializing in estate planning and helping provide peace of mind to families and businesses in Grand Rapids, Grandville, Cascade, Forest Hills, Ada, Byron Center, Caledonia, and the surrounding areas.  He specializes in “whole family wealth” planning for professionals with minor children, doctors, nurses, lawyers, and the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children) – and does so from a Christian perspective.  He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.

Make sure you pass on your “whole family wealth,” not just your money.  This includes your values, insights, stories and experiences – who you are and what is important to you.  In my experience this is THE most overlooked part of estate planning.  It happens to be one of the most fulfilling privileges I have when working with families.

Why Should I Care About Estate Planning?

June 3, 2010 /

Having figured out what estate planning “is” in my previous post, let’s move on to why estate planning is important.  Because the topic is so broad, I’m going to break it down and address it based on common life stages.  If you are curious how it applies to YOU, contact me and let’s talk about it.

Let’s start by looking at how critically important estate planning is for parents with kids under 18 years old.  It really doesn’t matter if all or some of your children are under 18.  These important issues apply if any of them is under 18:

  • Establish guardianship for your children under 18 – not doing so will leave their care up to a court to decide.  Someone who doesn’t know you and what’s important to you, your family dynamics, and your desires for your children’s future, will be the one making the decision who will raise them.
  • Establish temporary guardianship for your children – not doing so could leave them in the hands of child protective services or temporary/permanent foster care.
  • Make sure you have a comprehensive protection plan for your children so your babysitter, family, friends and guardians/temporary guardians know what to do if something happens to you and have the legal documentation to prove it.  We include instructions for these important people and even include a family emergency ID card for your wallet/purse.
  • Have your estate structured so your kids don’t succumb to “lottery winner syndrome” when they receive all of their inheritance outright at 18 years old.  Think about that for a second.  Let’s take an example: 2 children and an estate valued at $500,000 (and remember life insurance is included in the amount they receive).   Each child will receive whatever amount of their $250,000 share is not used up by the time they are 18.  Can you imagine?  Let’s say that ends up being $100,000.  How would you have handled $100,000 when you were 18?  I know how I would have handled it and it’s not pretty.  I read one study that said over half of outright inheritances are spent within 3 years of receiving them – no matter how much was received.
  • If you are a professional and subject to potential liability, make sure you structure your plan in a way that ensures your assets are there to benefit your kids and not lost to lawsuits, creditors and other liabilities.
  • Make sure you pass on your “whole family wealth,” not just your money.  This includes your values, insights, stories and experiences – who you are and what is important to you.  In my experience this is THE most overlooked part of estate planning.  It happens to be one of the most fulfilling privileges I have when working with families.
  • Have a health care directive (patient advocate designation) in place for yourself and your children to minimize conflict about your medical care.

These are just a few of the reasons families with kids under 18 need an estate plan.  Can you think of more?  Please share your thoughts and experiences.

With my next post in the series, I will look at why planning is vital for “professionals” – and you may be surprised how many families are in that group.

Michael Lichterman is an attorney specializing in estate planning and helping provide peace of mind to families and businesses in Grand Rapids, Grandville, Cascade, Forest Hills, Ada, Byron Center, Caledonia, and the surrounding areas.  He specializes in “whole family wealth” planning for professionals with minor children, doctors, nurses, lawyers, and the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children) – and does so from a Christian perspective.  He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.

Michael Lichterman is an attorney specializing in estate planning and helping provide peace of mind to families and businesses in Grand Rapids, Grandville, Cascade, Forest Hills, Ada, Byron Center, Caledonia, and the surrounding areas.  He specializes in “whole family wealth” planning for professionals with minor children, doctors, nurses, lawyers, and the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children) – and does so from a Christian perspective.  He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.

Traveling Without an Estate Plan – Why Leaving the Stove On Is the Least of Your Worries

May 25, 2010 /

Yep, it’s that time of year again . . . traveling season.  Memorial Day weekend is coming up, the kids will soon be out of school, and the summer travel season will be in full force.  No matter how well we plan, we always seem to forget something before leaving on vacation – or at least think we forgot something.  What about you?  Have you every worried that you left the stove on, forgot to put the garage door down (I always forget that one!), or didn’t lock the door to the house?  I’m sure you have.  Those are some of the common worries.  So let me ask, have you ever worried about what would happen to your children if something happened to you?

Most parents haven’t thought about this, or at least never did anything to take care of it.  Did you know that only about 1/3 of parents have named guardians for their children . . . ONLY 1/3?!  And yet we consider them to be the most precious gift and most important part of our lives (and they are!).  I encourage you to take it upon yourself to put an estate plan in place to make sure your kids are cared for by who YOU want in the way YOU want . . . BEFORE you go on vacation.

I frequently get calls to the office from parents who realize at the last minute that they need a plan in place – sometimes literally a day or two before leaving!  Sadly, it’s often too late to put something in place that is even somewhat thought-out before they leave.  It may go without saying – procrastination is the number one reason I see for families not having the needed legal documentation in place.  I can’t count how many times I’ve counseled caring parents through making these important decisions, and hear “yeah, we’ve been thinking about it for years, but have always put off the step of doing something about it.”

Here are three critically important items to have in place before vacation:

  • Name guardians for your children and make sure it is legally documented – don’t let the court system decide who will care for your children.  Make sure you plan for the long-term AND the short-term.
  • Have a power of attorney for health care and patient advocate designation in place so your family isn’t caught in a bitter conflict over your medical care
  • Have your finances in order so they aren’t lost to taxes or a lengthy court process

Make sure to take these important steps before YOU go on vacation.  And make sure to work with an attorney that specializes/focuses on estate planning for families. If you have questions – ask!  Give me a call, email me, or comment on this post so you can have your questions answered and have some added peace of mind before your next trip.

The Cheap, Online Will – A Real Life Example

May 11, 2010 /

Ok, you just have to read this post from Gregory Luce.  He is in the process of evaluating the differences between an online will and one drafted by an estate planning attorney.  He gives a very fair, well-reasoned analysis of the document and “extras” along with it – the positives and the negatives.  As can be expected, there are flaws in the document.  I encourage you to read the comments at the bottom of the post as they point out many areas of concern.  Some of the items could cause the “effect” of the will to be drastically different than what Mr. Luce intended.

Of course I made sure to add my $.02, which centered on the wholly inadequate guardianship provisions.  I regularly refer to 6 common mistakes that parents make when naming guardians for their children and most, if not all, of them show up in this situation.

Read the post, read the comments, and then let me know what you think.  Sure, it may be less in the short run to do the cheap online will and have the misplaced peace of mind it provides.  But at what cost?  Disinheriting a child?  Having someone challenge it and win?  Having someone taking care of your children who you would never choose . . . or not in the order you would choose?  I look forward to your comments!

Estate Planning for your Children’s Care (Guardianship)

September 5, 2009 /

First off, it has been far too long since I last posted.  A few crazy weeks of court hearings zapped what time I usually have to make informative posts to the blog.  You have my apologies and my promise to do my best to never go this long without posting again.

Yesterday, two things really caught my attention and reminded me how important it is for parents with minor children to have an estate plan.  Specifically, providing for guardianship of their children in their wills.

You may have heard of the controversial British public service announcement (PSA) against texting while driving.  It is a very graphic depiction of a severe car accident caused by a person texting while driving due to the graphic nature I am not posting a link to it here).  The entire video is troubling to watch, however I was particularly troubled by one scene.  A mother and father are in the front seats of the car, severely injured and unconscious (at a minimum).  They have a young daughter (maybe 4 or 5 years old) and a baby in the back seat.  Both children were properly in to their safety seats and had no injuries, and the daughter keeps asking her mom and dad to “wake up.”  As a dad, it broke my heart.  As an attorney it gave me a renewed sense of purpose to strongly encourage couples to plan for such an accident even though we all hope it never happens.  Hopefully the parents had a proper estate plan that provided guardians for their children and financial assistance for their care.  If not, a court would end up determining who would care for their children!

I also watched the movie “No Reservations,” starring Catherine Zeta Jones (CZJ) and Aaron Eckhart (AE).  I don’t want to ruin it for anyone who hasn’t watched it, so stop reading here if you don’t want to know what happened.  The short version is that CZJ’s adult sister dies in a car accident leaving a young daughter (maybe 7 or 8 years old).  It appears that the sister did proper planning, as there was documentation from a law firm stating that she wanted CZJ to be the guardian, and she indeed became the guardian.  The unique twist in this situation is that the sister was a single parent.  The father was never involved in the child’s life.  What would have happened if she didn’t have a proper estate plan?  I don’t know exactly, but there is a real likelihood that the daughter would have ended up with her father as guardian given that the law favors having a biological parent guardian.  Certainly this is not what the sister would have wanted.

Both of these situations could have ended up horribly for the children’s future care.  If you have minor children, you owe it to them to have a proper estate plan in place so that they are properly cared and provided for if, heaven forbid, you pass away.  If you have questions, please feel free to call or email me to schedule an appointment.  And give your kids a hug . . . they are a precious gift!