Arizona law provides for health care directives or living wills that allow a trusted agent to make critical and difficult health care decisions, such as end of life care, for you if you are unable to. Agents designated in a health care power of attorney can also make...
Estate Planning
The duty of a fiduciary: managing the assets of another
Most Arizona residents assume that they will be able to manage their assets until they die. Unfortunately, life is filled with unpleasant surprises, such as a serious illness, a traffic accident, or a crippling injury. Any of these events can deprive a person of the...
Why should new parents execute an estate plan?
Welcoming a new baby into your life can be both exhilarating and terrifying. You already love your bundle of joy, but you may be concerned about providing for them and making sure they are protected as they grow. While your immediate concerns may be about your baby’s...
The ABCs of special needs trusts in Arizona
Many Arizona families have a member who suffers from a severe disability or chronic illness; these individuals are generally referred to as special needs persons. Families with members who are classified as special needs individuals have a special challenge in...
Understanding the basics of an Arizona will contest
An unexpected death can disrupt family harmony in many ways. If the decedent has not left a will, surviving family members may fight about dividing the decedent’s assets. Even if the decedent planned carefully for division of his or her assets upon death, individual...
Should you revisit your estate plan?
You may have executed a comprehensive estate plan including a will, possibly a trust, a living will and powers of attorney for finances and health care. What you do not want to do following that is to leave that estate plan in a desk drawer gathering dust until you...
Understanding a personal representative’s responsibilities
When an individual makes an estate plan, often he or she will choose a trusted person to act as the personal representative of the estate, like a friend or family member. The personal representative of the estate has many important responsibilities and it can seem...
Navigating a complex path in probate and estate administration
Most people in Arizona probably never have much exposure to the court system in their lives. That is why being thrust into the probate court experience after the death of a loved one can be so jarring. It is not easy to navigate what can sometimes be a complex path...
How to build an incapacity plan
Incapacity is an important thing to plan for and several estate planning tools can help estate planners address those concerns in their estate plan. Estate planners should be familiar with their options for building their incapacity plan to protect themselves and...
When to update an estate plan
An estate plan is important to set up but after the estate planner sets one up, they should also regularly review it to ensure it is up-to-date. There are also important life events that should trigger the review of an estate plan that estate planners should be...