Estate Planning Legal Services for Cincinnati & NKY

Top 10 Mistakes that may devastate your family and their financial security without proper estate planning

1. Failure to make sure you have enough life/disability insurance to provide for your family.
2. Failure to execute a Health Care Power of Attorney, a Living Will, and a Financial Power of Attorney, resulting in your family needing to go through probate court to be appointed your guardian in order to avoid what Terry Schiavo had to do for 10 years – being kept alive on life support with a feeding tube.
3. Failure to use a trust in your estate plan to insure that your spouse and children do not recklessly deplete their inheritance and insure that your assets pass to your heirs upon their deaths.
4. Failure to designate a person who will raise your children if both parents die without a Last Will and Testament.
5. Failure to have a Last Will and Testament, if you are a Kentucky resident, will result in your spouse only receiving half of your property while your children receive the other half.
6. Failure to use a trust or transfer on death provisions for your assets, resulting in your estate needing to go through probate.
7. Failure to designate beneficiaries of your IRAs, 401(k), and other retirement plans, resulting in negative tax consequences to your heirs.
8. Failure to pre-plan your funeral, causing stress on your family and loved ones when you die.
9. Failure to organize your records, causing stress on your family and loved ones who are trying to find all of your important documents.
10. Failure to plan your business successor to avoid resulting chaos and possibly causing your business to fail or be sold at a bargain price.