Posts Categorized: Guardians for Minor Children

5 Ways DIY Estate Plans Can Fail & Leave Your Family At Risk – Part 2

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law January 25, 2022 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Incapacity, Personal Representative, Power of Attorney, Trust Administration & Probate, Trustee, Trusts, Wills

State laws are also particular about who can serve in specific roles like executor, trustee, or financial power of attorney. In some states, for instance, the executor of your will must either be a family member or an in-law and if not, the person must live in your state. If your chosen executor doesn’t meet those requirements, they cannot serve.

Furthermore, some states require the person you name as your executor to get a bond, like an insurance policy, before they can serve. Such bonds can be challenging to get for someone who has a less-than-stellar credit score. If your executor cannot get a bond, it would be up to the court to appoint your executor, which could end up being someone you would never want managing your assets or a third-party professional who could drain your estate with costly fees. READ MORE

5 Ways DIY Estate Plans Can Fail & Leave Your Family At Risk – Part 1

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law January 18, 2022 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Incapacity, Personal Representative, Power of Attorney, Trust Administration & Probate, Trustee, Trusts, Wills

Creating your estate plan using online document services can give you a false sense of security – you think you’ve got estate planning covered when you most likely do not. DIY plans may even lead you to believe that you no longer need to worry about estate planning, causing you to put it off creating a proper plan off until it’s too late.

In this way, relying on DIY estate planning documents is one of the most dangerous choices you can make. In the end, such generic forms could end up costing your family even more money and heartache than if you’d never gotten around to doing any planning at all. READ MORE

Estate Planning Must-Haves for Parents – Even If You Have Legal Documents

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law November 9, 2021 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Special Needs Trust, Trusts

A comprehensive estate plan can protect the things that matter most. For many, this means their property and their family.

When naming a legal guardian for your minor children, there are many factors to consider, such as whether the guardian has similar values to yours or can provide a welcoming home environment. But the most challenging decisions are often the most important. Consider the outcome if you died without having legal protections for your children in place. Your children could be subject to conflict between relatives, or they could be raised by someone you would never want or in a way you wouldn’t want. They could even temporarily be taken into the care of strangers. READ MORE

Just Married? 6 Estate Planning Essentials for Newlyweds – Part 2

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law June 29, 2021 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Healthcare, Incapacity, Personal Representative, Power of Attorney

Indeed, once your marriage is official, your relationship becomes entirely different from both a legal and financial perspective. With this in mind, last week in part one, we discussed the first three of six essential items you need to address in your plan, and here we cover the final three. READ MORE

Reviewing Your Estate Plan after the Death of a Loved One

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law March 11, 2021 Asset Protection, Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Healthcare, Incapacity, Personal Representative, Power of Attorney, Trust Administration & Probate, Trusts

Although your estate plan primarily focuses on what will happen if you become incapacitated (unable to make or communicate your wishes) or die, the death of a loved one can have a major impact on your planning. If you have an estate plan, one of the first items you need to do when a loved one dies is to review the documents with the following questions in mind: READ MORE

Moving To A New State? Remember to Update Your Estate Plan

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law March 4, 2021 Asset Protection, Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Power of Attorney, Trusts, Wills

Although you likely won’t need to have an entirely new estate plan prepared for you, upon relocating to another state, you should definitely have your existing plan reviewed by an estate planning lawyer who is familiar with your new home state’s laws. Each state has its own laws governing estate planning, and those laws can differ significantly from one location to another. READ MORE

The Recipe for a Satisfying Estate Plan

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law December 28, 2020 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Healthcare, Personal Representative, Power of Attorney, Trustee, Trusts, Wills

Misconceptions about who needs an estate plan abound. Most people believe that estate planning is only for extremely wealthy business moguls or celebrities. But that could not be further from the truth. Estate planning is the process of making decisions about what happens to you, your money, and your property when you pass away or can no longer make decisions for yourself. Thus, estate planning should be standard practice for every adult age eighteen or older.

To learn more about Cheever Law, APC and estate planning, please register for our FREE educational Life & Legacy Planning Webinar. We look forward to serving you! READ MORE

3 Unique Ways to Handle the Guilt Inherent to Being a Parent

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law May 26, 2020 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Personal Representative

If you are like most parents, you were probably struggling with guilt even before the virus. You simply can’t make it to every award ceremony or recital, and you might not have as much time to play with your kids or help them with their homework as you’d like. Those feelings of guilt may now be compounded by all the additional responsibilities you’ve had to take on in a short space of time. READ MORE

Online Wills? When You Should, When You Shouldn’t and Where to Do It

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law April 17, 2020 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Healthcare, Wills

With all of the media about “digital wills” and “online estate planning” it could be tempting to think you can do your estate planning yourself, online. And, maybe you can. But, if you do, you need to know the potential pitfalls. Online estate planning could be a big trap for the unwary and actually leave your family worse off than if you had done nothing at all. READ MORE

The Real Cost To Your Family: Having No Estate Plan At All

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law August 24, 2019 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Trusts, Wills

This is a continuation of the discussion of the true costs and consequences of failed estate planning. Here I discuss a few of the most common—and costly—planning mistakes I encounter with clients. If this article exposes any potential gaps or weak spots in your plan, meet with me to learn how to properly address them. READ MORE

Three Tips for Talking About Your Estate Plan During the Holidays

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law December 22, 2018 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Healthcare, Personal Representative, Trusts, Wills

Christmas is right around the corner, bringing the joyous season of gathering with family and loved ones into full-swing. It is the time to slow down, get caught up with loved ones, and enjoy the family and experience quality time around the dinner table. It is also a great idea to take this opportunity to review your estate plan and talk about the topic with your loved ones. READ MORE

When Something is NOT Better Than Nothing—Part 2

by Tara Cheever ~ Attorney at Law November 8, 2018 Estate Planning, Guardians for Minor Children, Trusts, Wills

Last week, I shared the first part of this series discussing the hidden dangers of do-it-yourself estate planning. In part two, I cover one of the greatest risks posed by DIY documents.

You might think you can save time and money by using do-it-yourself estate planning documents you find online. You’re probably anxious to check estate planning off your life’s to-do list, and these forms offer a seemingly quick and inexpensive way to handle this important task. READ MORE