By Jenna H. Keller
Keller Law, LLC 

Jenna H. Keller offers tips on how to get your affairs in order

 


With COVID-19 bearing down on our daily lives, the inevitable question that arises is: Are my affairs in order? This question is frequently followed by: What do I need to do to get my affairs in order?

The documents you may need to resolve these concerns are generally divided into two categories:

1. Those you need in place while you’re alive but perhaps unable to act on your own (i.e. you are incapacitated). These include financial and medical powers of attorney and a living will (also called an advance directive); and

2. Those governing your assets and affairs upon death.

The role of the modern estate planning attorney (even prior to COVID-19) has changed. Estate planning forms and online templates are readily available, but the modern family unit, the complexity of assets and tax planning has changed and is constantly changed. More and more what people need is someone to help with the overall plan to provide guidance on how best to address certain nuances to your situation, rather than boilerplate documents.

Examples of nuances might be blended family planning, the choices for a young family, planning for unique assets such as a business or farm/ranch, assets that are not otherwise easily divided such as real estate, multi-state and international planning, IRA planning under the SECURE Act, planning for long-term care, charitable bequests and income/estate tax planning.

Often overlooked items on a “do-it-yourself” plan include how to properly title assets or who to list as beneficiary of a retirement account and ensuring eligibility for social security disability insurance for a disabled child or family member. In many instances, the costs and ramifications to a do-it-yourself plan lead to increased difficulty and expense in administration along with a greater likelihood of litigation thwarting the decedent’s intentions.

Because of social distancing and Colorado’s current shelter-in-place order, you may feel it will be challenging to work with an attorney on your plan. This is not the case. Most, if not all attorneys, are working remotely and available to assist. An initial meeting can be completed via video or phone call in the convenience of your home without the need for an in-person meeting. Estate planning attorneys will typically prepare documents for your review after that initial meeting and send those to you through email or mail to review. If the documents meet with your approval, the attorney can prepare the documents for final signing and again send those out by mail or to your email. Estate plan documents can then be signed through remote notarization under recently enacted regulations from the Secretary of State by those notaries technologically equipped to do so. Finally, attorneys can them confirm their proper execution and follow through to ensure their validity.

If had been some time since you had your documents updated, a quick call to your estate planning attorney to ease your worries may be in order. Alternatively, if you have delayed or put off getting your affairs in order, then consider maximizing the time you have at home with your family to schedule an appointment for your estate planning. Many attorneys offer flexible schedule time outside of normal business hours to accommodate working hours or commitments to the family.

Locally, there are numerous qualified estate planning attorneys who are inherently local businesses that provide jobs and support to our community. These attorneys are ready, willing and able to assist you in your estate planning from the comfort of your own home. Resources for locating an estate planning attorney and supported content can be found at http://www.estateplanning.com or through the Colorado Bar Association at https://www.licensedlawyer.org/co.

 

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