Making Your Wishes Known Before Death
Your estate plan is your opportunity to make your wishes known regarding how your property should be distributed among your beneficiaries and how your affairs should be handled in the event that you are unable to handle them yourself. In the absence of legally recognized documents outlining your wishes, the courts have no other option than to rely on statutory guidelines in the handling of your estate.
If you pass away without an estate plan in place, not only is there a chance that your estate will be administered in a way that you do not want, there is also a strong chance that the entire process could cause your family to lose considerable amounts of money in taxes, legal fees and other charges. Working with an experienced Northwest Indiana estate planning attorney can help to ensure that your plan is complete and is an accurate representation of your intentions.
Getting the Right Solution for Your Needs
At the law firm of Dugan, Repay & Rybicki, P.C., our Schererville estate planning attorneys help clients reach their goals through customized, well-prepared plans. From our offices in Saint John, we represent clients from Lake County, Porter County and throughout Northwest Indiana.
We offer our clients quality legal services in all areas of estate planning and probate, including:
- Wills and trusts: The primary vehicles for addressing how your assets will be distributed upon death.
- Powers of attorney: Allow you to designate trusted individuals to make decisions about your medical care and financial affairs in the event that you are unable to do so.
- Advance health care directive: Also called a living will, it allows you to document your preferences regarding your medical care if you become terminally ill.
- Transfer on death deeds: They provide you with an economic solution that can help to simplify the process of passing real estate to your beneficiaries.
- Probate and estate administration: We represent people on all sides of probate disputes, including will and trust contests, in addition to providing advice and guidance to executors and trustees regarding the fulfillment of their duties.
- Small estates: For estates valued at less than $50,000, we may be able to help you bypass the probate process.
- Guardianships: When it becomes necessary for you to become the legal guardian of a family member's child or an incapacitated adult relative, we can help you through the process.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Saint John Attorney
To learn more about how our Saint John estate planning lawyers can help you or to schedule a free initial estate planning consultation, please call 219-227-4266 or send us an e-mail by completing our online contact form.
