Many people don’t realize that one of the key documents, that is part of a Living Trust-centered estate plan, is what’s called a Durable Power of Attorney. The person that you appoint to be your “agent” under this power of attorney has vast powers to handle your financial affairs, but only at such time that you should become so incapacitated that you cannot handle your financial matters yourself. The Living Trust already has similar provisions, but this Power of Attorney is often required by third-parties when conducting financial transactions, such as selling a property, obtaining a loan or mortgage, filing tax returns, doing income and estate tax planning, obtaining government benefits and contracting for nursing care. 
THE SOLUTION:
Making Sure Your Plan is Up-to-date
and You’re Properly Protected!
We regularly contact our clients to remind them of the free estate plan checkup meeting they’re entitled to every 3 years. While a good number of our clients do come in for their free checkup meetings, unfortunately there are many who do not. During this free checkup meeting, the attorney meets only with the client, when discussing the key aspects of the plan, with nobody else present, in order to ensure that the client and his or her decisions are not unduly influenced by anyone. We are able to determine whether the original agent chosen under the Durable Power of Attorney and the original choice of Successor Trustee of the Living Trust are still appropriate and reflect what the client wants. It’s during these review meetings that we also sometimes discover instances where the client may be evidencing reduced capacity, and/or there may be some form of elder abuse already occurring, and are able to take actions to help protect the client.
Don’t Procrastinate,
Start the New Year Right and Make an Appointment!
Keep in mind that no estate plan, written by man or woman, is ever bulletproof. It is designed at a specific point in time and many things can change over the years. If you haven’t seen us for 3 years, contact our office at 1-800-756-5596 and schedule your free checkup meeting. If you still aren’t sure about these and other reasons why you should come in and review your trust, check out our free brochure, then make your appointment!
Help Others You Know, Too!
Finally, if you have any friends, family members, neighbors or coworkers who have an estate plan (whether we prepared it or not), encourage them to attend one of our upcoming seminars. If they are interested, they can then book a free consultation to have their existing estate plan reviewed by one of our attorneys.
By having an estate plan reviewed and kept up-to-date, they and you can enjoy the peace of mind that comes from knowing that everything is in proper order.
