San Antonio Estate Planning Lawyer

Helping You Protect Your Family’s Legacy

As you look ahead toward the future, you may start thinking about what’s going to happen to your assets long-term. Your real estate, bank accounts, investments, and other belongings need to be protected. Creating an estate plan allows you to set yourself up for success while determining what will happen to your assets after you pass away.

An estate plan also helps you use your assets to your own benefit. As we age, new costs arise, like in-home care, nursing home care, and medical bills. By creating a plan now, you can protect your assets and use them to pay for your needs as you get older.

The Hicks Law Firm is here to help you create a comprehensive estate plan that meets your needs. We understand that no two estates are exactly alike, which is why we will work with you to create legal documents with your goals in mind. Whether you’ve just obtained your first significant asset or you’re only a few years away from retirement, it is never too early to start your estate planning journey. For a free consultation, call 210-985-8330 today.

What is Included in an Estate Plan?

An estate plan can contain several legal documents that protect your assets and your property. Depending on your goals, you can use some or all of these documents in your plan. During your estate planning consultation, we will take a look at your assets and make recommendations depending on what the future looks like for you.

The documents we may recommend include the following:

Last Will and Testament

Your last will and testament, known more commonly as a will, includes instructions for your estate after you pass away. A will is the most common legal document in an estate plan, as it lets your family members know how your estate should be distributed after your death. You can also use a will to name guardianship over minor children and pets.

Trusts

A trust is a legal agreement that allows a third party to manage and maintain some of your assets. By using a specific type of trust, you can remove assets from your estate while still benefiting from them. Many people choose to create a trust if they want to lower their tax burden or qualify for Medicaid without “spending down” their assets.

Powers of Attorney

A power of attorney document allows another person to make financial or medical decisions on your behalf. In most cases, this power is used if you become incapacitated and you can no longer make decisions on your own. You can give someone else very broad power or put strict limitations on what they can do.

Advance Health Directives

Healthcare documents, also called advance health directives, assign a person to be your healthcare proxy in case you cannot explain your medical wishes. If you become ill or injured, your proxy can talk to your medical team about what treatments you do or do not wish to have. This is very helpful for end-of-life care.

What is the Estate Planning Process?

Because all estate plans are unique, the estate planning process looks different for everyone. However, there are some common steps that everyone must complete when creating an estate plan.

When you meet with our law firm, here’s what you can expect:

• We’ll give you a free 20-minute initial consultation to go over your goals and the services you’re looking for. We can talk about your current estate plan, which estate planning documents you’re interested in, and why you want assistance from an attorney.
• We’ll then learn more about your goals for your estate plan. Every estate matter requires different documentation. We’ll talk about your family dynamics, your retirement goals, and what you’d like to include in your estate plan.
• Once we know how to proceed, we’ll start drafting documents for you to look over. Wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and healthcare documents are all essential components of your estate plan. We’ll customize them all to meet your needs.
• We’ll then have you look over all your documents before you sign them. If there are any changes you want to have made or additions you want, we can do that before finalizing your plan.
•  After your estate plan is in place, we’ll keep an eye on your assets and update your documents as needed.

What is the Probate Process?

As you create an estate plan, you’ll probably hear a lot about the probate process. Probate is a court-overseen process that all wills must go through after a person dies. During probate, a judge will examine the legitimacy of the will and all the instructions included in it. If any family member has a dispute or wants to challenge the distribution of assets, they can do so during probate.

Probate can take up to a year to complete, and it may cost your family money in court. If you’d like to avoid probate so your beneficiaries can receive their assets sooner, our law firm can help you create an estate plan to minimize the effect probate has. Contact us today to learn more.

What Does an Estate Planning Lawyer Do?

Creating an estate plan is the best way to incorporate asset protection into your official documents. Our attorney can help you minimize taxes, name beneficiaries, designate inheritance, and more. We will make recommendations based on your estate so your assets are protected from bankruptcy, medical care needs, and any other expenses that could arise.

To learn more about creating a comprehensive estate plan, contact The Hicks Law Firm by calling 210-985-8330 today.