Orange County Estate Planning Lawyer

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Regardless of your current financial situation, it is likely that you have an estate, as most people do. An estate consists of all your possessions and assets, including your car, your home, the money in your bank account, any investments, and retirement accounts, and all your personal possessions. Many adults wait until they are aging to begin making a plan for their estate after their passing, but one of the best things you can do for your future self and your heirs is to speak with an Orange County estate planning lawyer and develop a well-thought out estate plan with plenty of time left. The team at Evolution Tax and Legal is here to help break down the estate planning process, and offer insight as to how we can help you along the way.

Why Hire Evolution Tax and Legal To Help With Planning Your Estate in Orange County?

At Evolution Tax and Legal, we provide a unique value proposition to all of our clients: our team is dually-certified in law and accounting, which allows us to provide insight into the financial aspect of estate planning, as well as the legal implications for your heirs. At Evolution Tax and Legal:

We can use our experience with estate planning to provide financial and legal guidance for the estate holder, as well as guidance for the heirs.
We will ensure that all your affairs are in order and all of your estate planning documents are valid and enforceable, using our legal expertise to go above and beyond the guidance a regular financial planner can provide.
We can provide guidance into various types of estate planning, including international estate planning for U.S citizens, residents and non-U.S residents who hold assets within the United States.
We provide a personalized experience, working with our clients to understand them and their goals, in order to provide them with guidance that will work for the individual.

What Is Estate Planning?

Estate planning is the process of developing the legal documents that will present your wishes for after your death. The documents include how you wish for your assets and property to be distributed among beneficiaries, if you have any minor children who will become their guardians and even healthcare decisions.

The distribution of your assets and property is one of the biggest parts of the estate plan, and includes determining what beneficiaries will receive the assets and how they will receive them. The assets and property in your estate include any real estate and real property you own, any bank accounts that are held in your name, life insurance policies, stocks and securities, personal property such as jewelry, cars and technology and any retirement assets and accounts.

Throughout the estate planning process, you and your Orange County estate planning attorney will work to answer the questions: What is the current state of your financial affairs? What real and personal property do you currently hold, and what is the financial value of the property? Who will receive the assets after your passing, and how much of each asset will each beneficiary receive? What funeral arrangements will be planned and how will the costs be covered? These questions will provide you with the comfort of knowing your estate and beneficiaries will be taken care of once you are gone, and it is never too early to start asking these questions.

Who Needs Estate Planning Services?

It is a good idea for anyone over the age of 18 who holds any assets or property to begin thinking about an estate plan. Ensuring the protection of the assets you worked hard for will provide you with peace of mind, as well as ensure that your medical directives are carried out to the best of your wishes provided you become incapacitated. At Evolution Tax and Legal, our Orange County estate planning lawyers can work with you to determine the level of estate planning that is best for you at whatever point you are at in life, from basic planning needs to a sophisticated, thorough plan.

What Is the Estate Planning Process?

The estate planning process looks different for everyone, depending on their unique situation, but almost all estate plans begin with the process of writing a will. The will writing process includes compiling a list of all of your assets and information needed to access these assets, including deeds and account numbers. Then you will determine how your assets will be divided and what beneficiaries will receive the assets. You will likely appoint a fiduciary to carry out your estate plan, and provide a detailed list of your wishes so the fiduciary can carry out your estate plan to the best of their ability.

After writing the will and determining who will be a beneficiary, the process can move on to determining how the assets will be protected and distributed. This includes setting up trusts in the name of your beneficiaries so you can limit estate taxes, and appointing trustees to control the trusts until they are distributed among beneficiaries. You will also need to appoint a guardian for any dependents in your care, and set up a durable Power of Attorney to direct any other assets and investments. During the estate planning process with your Orange County estate planning attorney, you will also likely begin preparing your funeral arrangements and determining how the costs for your funeral will be covered.

How Can an Orange County Estate Planning Lawyer Help?

When you begin the process of estate planning, the first thing you will need to do is find a lawyer who can help you with the process of setting up the necessary legal documents. This includes the creation of your will, determination of your beneficiaries, and appointment of your estate’s fiduciary. Working with an estate planning attorney in Orange County who has actual experience in estate planning can help ensure that your beneficiaries and assets are legally protected throughout the process, and help your beneficiaries avoid a potentially lengthy and costly probate process.

The team at Evolution Tax and Legal is experienced in estate planning and will work with you to determine how we can best meet your needs. The team utilizes the financial and legal knowledge gained from dual-certifications in accounting and law to provide you with a well-rounded estate planning experience. With our years of experience in California, we thoroughly understand the state and federal laws that will affect your estate planning process. We will work with you to protect your family and your legacy for the future, no matter your current financial situation or estate status.

Our Estate Planning Services in Orange County

Our team offers a breadth of estate planning services, including:

Wills: Our team will help you identify all your assets, real property, and possessions and determine the financial value of all these assets. We will work with you to write the valid legal will and ensure all your wishes are clearly communicated to the appointed fiduciary.
Trusts: Our team will determine if it will be beneficial to you or the beneficiaries of your estate to establish a trust, which will help minimize estate taxes your beneficiaries may face in the future. We can help with the establishment of a trust, appointment of trustees and communication of trust instructions and distribution among beneficiaries in the future.
Probate: Part of the estate planning process that can be lengthy and complicated is when an estate goes to probate, which is the process of paying off the debts of a deceased person and properly distributing the estate among the designated heirs. Our Orange County estate planning lawyers can work with you to make the probate process as seamless and short as possible.

Benefits of Estate Planning

The benefits of developing a valid estate plan early in life cannot be overstated. An estate plan provides you with peace of mind, and the knowledge that if anything happens to you, you will still be able to provide for your family. An estate plan will also help your beneficiaries save thousands on probate fees, avoid any delays in transferring of money to your beneficiaries and save your family from having to make any decisions during a difficult time.

Schedule a Free Consultation With an Estate Planning Lawyer in Orange County, CA

The team at Evolution Tax and Legal is here to provide their estate planning expertise and guidance to ensure you are prepared for the future, and have a plan in place for your assets and property. Contact our team today to schedule a free consultation with an estate planning attorney and learn how our personalized services can begin benefiting you today.