Protect Your Family with Estate Planning
When you are gone, who will protect your family? You still can. Documents like wills, trusts, and power of attorney are extremely useful legal tools that shield your family from a drawn-out legal process by simplifying, streamlining, or eliminating the probate process.
The Milwaukee-area law firm of McLario, Helm & Bertling, S.C., has been assisting families with comprehensive estate planning services for decades. We have extensive experience with the preparation and execution of wills and trusts, and we can also assist with the creation of power of attorney directives. As our firm has grown and expanded over the last 60 years, so has our ability to provide effective estate planning, administration, and litigation services.
If you need advice concerning power of attorney directives or if you are interested in creating a will or living revocable trust, contact our office in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. We provide free consultations for individuals throughout the Greater Milwaukee area, and our wills and trusts attorneys are happy to sit down with you and create an estate planning solution that will work for your family.
Wills
The death of a loved one is tough enough without having to deal with extended legal proceedings. Creating a properly drafted will can eliminate many of the common problems and delays that are associated with probate. Our knowledgeable estate planning attorneys can assist with the preparation of a clear and concise last will and testament, which will effectively express your wishes for:
- Funeral arrangements
- Property and asset allocation
- Bequests to individuals inside and outside of your family
We bring extensive business and financial knowledge to the table when we work with you to create a last will and testament, and we leave no issues uncovered during discussions. This results in the creation of an ironclad and enduring legal document that will serve as an effective guide for your loved ones after your passing.
For more information about wills and trusts services available at our Milwaukee-area firm, please contact our office today at (262) 251-4210.
Trusts
A trust, most often a revocable living trust, is an estate planning document that is commonly used as a substitute for a last will and testament. Many of our clients prefer to transfer assets through a trust rather than a will, because this allows them to:
- Bypass probate
- Control or eliminate tax liability
- Protect the privacy of beneficiaries
- Protect their heirs from divorce, lawsuits, creditors, etc.
Trust arrangements offer many advantages over wills for the transfer of wealth. Creating a trust can provide asset protection for beneficiaries and reduce estate tax liability. Trusts can also guard against unforeseen changes that would affect asset allocation, including divorce and legal separation. For many of our clients, a trust is the principal document in their estate plan.
A trust can be revocable or irrevocable, living or testamentary, and tax motivated or tax neutral. One of the more preferred forms of trust is a living revocable trust. A living revocable trust is a flexible legal document that can be changed at any time.
If you are interested in setting up a living revocable trust, please contact our Menomonee Falls office to arrange for a free consultation with an estate planning attorney at our firm.
Power of Attorney: Financial and Health Directives
Power of attorney directives allow you to designate a trusted person to handle your affairs and make decisions on your behalf in the event you are unable to make your own decisions. These directives may provide broad extensive control or they may be limited to a specific situation like a real estate transaction.
As part of a comprehensive estate plan, it is customary to create a health care power of attorney document that outlines your wishes regarding life-sustaining medical procedures and designates a person to make health care decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated.
We can provide valuable assistance with advanced health care directives and power of attorney documents. As part of our services, we will thoroughly explain all the factors that you need to consider when planning directives. Our goal is to help you design a legal document that accurately and effectively represents your wishes.
