Clearing up Common Estate Planning Misconceptions with Elder Law Attorneys

In this enlightening video, Hooper Law Office Estate Planning Attorneys appeared on Local Live Five to delve into the complexities of Estate Planning and aim to dispel prevalent misconceptions that often hinder individuals from securing their legacies. Our esteemed Elder Law Attorneys bring their expertise to the forefront, providing clarity on essential topics that are frequently misunderstood. Understand the critical differences between Wills and Trusts. Learn why Estate Planning is not solely for the wealthy. Discover the importance of naming beneficiaries and updating them regularly. Explore how Estate Planning can help avoid Probate and minimize taxes. Gain insights into the role of Power of Attorney and advance healthcare directives. Join us as we navigate these vital issues, empowering viewers with the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions about their future and that of their loved ones. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell for more informative content on Elder Law and Estate Planning.

Millaine Wells
Welcome back to Local Five Live. Whatever the size of your estate, it pays to plan in advance.

Lisa Malak
Attorneys Justin Randall and Collin Mettelka are here from Hooper Law Office with some important reminders. Good morning to both of you guys. Okay. Tell us about some of the misconceptions you see in your practice when it comes to planning for, you know, retirement and family planning.

Justin Randall
Yeah, I think one of the most common misconceptions we see is really like what certain Estate Planning documents do or how they work. So when people are talking about Wills, for example, they often think, Well, if I have a Will, it means I don't have to go through the Probate process. But what Wills specifically are is a list of instructions to the Probate court of who you want in charge, where you want things to go.

Justin Randall
It's a list to that court of. These are the rules to follow. So having a Will means you're intending to go through Probate. So that's probably the biggest misconception. Another misconception we have a lot is just that Powers of Attorney while active during lifetime extend beyond death as well. A lot of times a family member who has a Power of Attorney agent will think, I can keep acting after mom or dad's passed and that's not the case.

Justin Randall
Those and at death.

Millaine Wells
Fascinating. How can a Trust benefit somebody with, let's say, a more modest estate? Sometimes we think of it being these, you know, elaborate mansions and acres of land, but that doesn't have to be true.

Collin Mettelka
Yeah. So people that want to have that good planning in place that you can have with a Will, but might also want to avoid the Probate process. Trust is a great plan to do that. Some people try to avoid the Probate process by maybe using beneficiary designations and payable upon-death types of things on accounts, but those don't really take into account any sort of planning, any sort of administrative process.

Collin Mettelka
So if you're looking to avoid the Probate process but want that good planning, still a Trust would be a good tool.

Lisa Malak
So other than distribution of money or property, are there any other great reasons to make sure that you have a plan?

Justin Randall
Yeah. I mean, one of the biggest things is just if you have a legacy that you want to leave behind and not just necessarily a monetary legacy, but sort of incentivizing the next generation to do certain things, maybe you're very charitably inclined and you want them to continue that and have that incentive as well. But another really good reason to do planning, speaking of Powers of Attorney, is making sure that you have things in place while you're alive to that allow somebody to step in for you, make decisions so that those Powers of Attorney you could have the best Will or Trust in the world, but you don't have what you need right now.

Millaine Wells
And a reminder, this isn't usually a one-and-done sort of thing. How should people stay up to date and make sure that everything reflects their current wishes?

Collin Mettelka
So a good general rule is that you should have your Estate Plan reviewed every 3 to 5 years. So that would mean going in and speaking with an Estate Planning or Elder Law Attorney to help go through your documents to make sure that everything is still how you want it to be. Make sure there hasn't been any law changes that might have affected your plan that you're unaware of and just kind of talk through things.

Lisa Malak
Collin, We've known Justin for years now, and this is your first time on the show. Why are you passionate about this area of law?

Collin Mettelka
You know, it's one of those things that it affects everyone. You know, so death and taxes, right? Right. Right. The two things and those are two things that we deal with a lot. So it's nice to be able to practice in an area of law that really affects everybody.

Millaine Wells
And this.