Probate Services Inc. has been serving its clients with professional legal assistance for trust administration, estate administration, power of attorney cases, and more.

Over the years of our services, we have come across many clients who are unfamiliar with estate planning. If you are one of those people but still want to learn about estate planning and administration, we have got you covered. Let us have a look at these concepts below:

What is Estate Planning?

Estate planning is the process where you prepare for tasks that help manage the asset base of an individual in an event of death or incapacitation. The process includes settlement of the estate taxes and inheritance of the assets by the heirs.

Most people who want to leverage estate planning seek help from an attorney or an experienced estate administration firm. In estate planning, an attorney will determine how your assets will be managed, administered, preserved, and distributed after your death or incapacitation.

There are different ways of estate planning, which include:

1. Setting up a trust:

When we talk about setting up a trust, it generally means processing the protection of your assets legally. In the case of a trust, the trustor gives the right to the trustee to take charge of their assets and properties. It is done for the benefit of another party that is the final beneficiary of the trust. You can create two types of trusts for your estate planning – a testamentary trust or a living trust. The former kickstarts when the trustor dies while the latter is executed while the trustor is still alive.

When you do estate planning, you can use either type of trust to avoid issues with estate taxes and other related problems.

2. Power of Attorney (POA)

A legal arrangement where a person is given rights and power to make decisions and act on the behalf of another person. The former here is called an agent and the latter is known as the principal. Only when the principal is incapacitated, disabled, or absent in any event can their agent use this power. The agent is allowed to make decisions for the finances, estate, and healthcare directives of the principal.

3. A Will or Codicil

A will is a legal document that is a testament by an individual or testator expressing how they want to distribute their assets and properties after their death. The individual needs to appoint an executor to administer it and perform the related duties.

On the other hand, a codicil is an addition made to the will. It helps the executor learn which part of the already-written and executed will can be amended in the pre-mentioned situations. A codicil is also valid after the death of the individual. Will or Codicil administration is done through the legal process called probate.

4. A Gratuitous Arrangement

In this situation, a donor (owner of a property) transfers the ownership of their property to another person called the donee. In this case, the property is transferred as a gift or deed through different gifting strategies or arrangements. So, there is no payment made by the donee or collected by the donor.

All these practices of estate planning help an individual manage their estate and limit taxes on it. When you carry out estate planning with the help of a trusted estate planner like Angelique Friend from Probate Services Inc., you can be in control. So, when you are not available to look after your estate, it will already be taken care of and everything will happen as per your plan and wish.

Estate planning also helps minimize estate taxes, costs, disputes, etc. It also provides legal assistance to the owner of the estate and protection to the beneficiaries.

What is Estate Administration?

Estate planning is done by a person who owns the estate. On the other hand, the work of estate professionals, after the death or incapacitation of the individual, is collectively called estate administration.

In broader terminology, estate administration is known as the process of taking a deceased person’s estate through the process of probate. Here, the will of the deceased person is taken in for general administration, and the person’s assets are reviewed and distributed following the legal process.

Estate planning and administration are crucial if you want your estate to be managed well during your lifetime and after your death. So, look for reliable estate administration professionals from Porbate Services Inc. Our professionals like Angelique Friend will help you get through the process without any hassle.