These are plenty of seemingly good reasons to procrastinate on estate planning. Your business may be thriving, and it requires your full attention. Maybe there doesn’t seem to be enough time to get organized. But the most common reason to kick the estate planning can down the road is that you feel healthy and have many good years ahead.
In reality, we all know that a sudden health incident could change all that in an instant. That’s why it’s crucial to stop postponing creating a diligent estate plan that puts the full force of law behind your financial and end-of-life decisions. These rank among the potential consequences of delaying any longer.
Uncertainty About Healthcare Decisions
One of the key components of a thorough estate plan has little to do with wealth or assets. If you become incapacitated as a result of an illness or injury, critical health and end-of-life decisions can place a heavy burden on loved ones.
By crafting an advanced healthcare directive, or “living will” as it is commonly called, family members and loved ones have detailed guidelines about how you want medical treatments such as resuscitation, mechanical life support, organ donation, and other essential medical issues handled. By crafting a thoughtful advanced healthcare directive with impeccable detail, you can take these difficult decisions off your loved ones’ shoulders and secure the dignity you deserve.
Unnecessary Emotional Strain on Family Members
Good people have powerful and sometimes out-of-character reactions to the loss of a loved one. Family members can also have vastly different ideas about how you would like assets distributed, especially dearly personal items. A relatively inexpensive locket or heirloom can result in even the most loving siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles, squabbling, bickering, and holding grudges over sentimental items.
The resentment that can occur in the absence of a clearly articulated estate plan is rarely about money. It’s personal, deeply personal. Creating an estate plan now that makes your wishes known defuses potential hard feelings later. It’s truly a gift of kindness in that regard.
Leaves Child-Rearing Decisions to Strangers
Everyday people don’t often think about a debilitating illness or injury happening in the next week, day, or even hour. Despite our sometimes feeling of control and invincibility, no one knows what the future will bring. While we all hope it is robust and allows us to care for our children to the fullest, putting a secure estate plan in place ranks among the most loving ways a parent can protect a child.
A comprehensive estate plan does far more than put someone in charge of your assets and dole out wealth. It also puts certain safeguards in place to ensure your minor child is raised in a fashion you would approve of. You have the ability to select a guardian now who shares your values, religious affiliation, and will fulfill the nurturing and economic needs of the child in your absence. It’s difficult to imagine not holding your baby tomorrow, but tragedy strikes when we least expect. That’s why it’s necessary to have an estate plan in place that delivers a secure future. Without one, the state could be making decisions about your child’s quality of life for you.
Absence of Will and Estate Plan Invites Unnecessary Costs
It’s certainly true that Wills and estate planning have a great deal to do with money. You have worked hard, accumulated wealth, assets, and want your heirs to benefit to the fullest. But without a Will or legally enforceable estate plan in place, your legacy will be a matter for a probate judge to decide.
It’s remarkable how many peripheral acquaintances show up to put in a claim against an estate. Each frivolous lawsuit costs time, money, and reduces the wealth you want loved ones to enjoy. There will also be attorney and court fees to pay out of the estate. If you are still uncertain about the benefits of calling an estate planning lawyer now, consider the diminishing returns that could result from further delay.
Don’t Wait. Contact an Estate Planning Attorney Before You Suffer a Critical Health Event
Whether you are in the prime of your youth or one of our valued elders, it’s essential to have a diligently crafted estate plan in place. You owe it to yourself and your loved ones to make certain health, wellness, childcare, and financial matters crystal clear. At Atlanta Wills + Trusts Law Group by Refeca Law LLC, we work diligently with our community members to craft thoughtful estate plans that enjoy the force of law and deliver kindness. Please call our law firm today and schedule a consultation.
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Additional Reading
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/estate-planning-when-you-re-elderly-ill.html