Congratulations! You’re at a point in your life where you have settled down and you’re enjoying watching your family grow and change. While it’s true that there are many things that you need to see to when it comes to your growing family, it’s critical that you never overlook the importance of putting together a comprehensive estate plan which will care for your young family if the unexpected were to happen and you or your spouse were no longer here to care for your loved ones.
3 Things to Remember When Setting Up an Estate Plan for Your Young Family
There are several important decisions that you will need to make when putting together an estate plan for your young family. Here are a few details that you and your significant other should consider and that your estate planning attorney should review with you:
- Naming a successor executor or trustee
One of the important nominations that you will make in your Last Will & Testament is an executor. Also, if you have young children, there is a high likelihood that you will also establish a testamentary trust in your Last Will & Testament which will set out terms for the inheritance for your children. For your final wishes to play out accordingly, you will need to appoint an executor and a trustee. While you will probably name your significant other to this role, what happens if he or she is unable to carry out these responsibilities for any reason? Choosing a success executor and trustee will give you the peace of mind of knowing that there will be someone to oversee your estate if your spouse is unable to for any reason.
- Appointing a guardian
In line with naming a succession executor or trustee, it would be remiss not to plan for a world where you and your spouse may not be here to care for young children. If an alternate guardian is not named in your estate planning documents, then the courts will need to intervene to name a guardian for your child(ren) which is typically not something that any parent wants.
- Ensuring that you have the proper trust parameters in your estate planning documents
Although selecting a trustee who can carry out the details that are in your trust, it’s imperative that you establish a trust that will ensure that your child is well taken care of if something were to happen to you or your spouse. In most cases, parents will not want assets distributed directly to their child, especially when they are young. Therefore, it’s key that you partner with an experienced estate planning attorney who will help you to put the proper wording in place to ensure that your heirs receive their inheritance around a timeframe that you feel comfortable with. This could include receiving one distribution at a certain age or it could mean that you set up several different distributions in certain percentages at certain ages. There are several factors that need to be taken into consideration when making this decision which is why it’s something that should always be discussed not only with your spouse and family but also with your estate planning attorney.
Let Us Help You Plan for Your Young Family
Our estate planning attorneys are well versed in assisting clients from all walks of life. Whether you’re planning for young children or planning for the inheritance of young grandchildren, you can take comfort in the fact that we will help you put all of the pieces of this complicated puzzle together with you. Get in touch with us today to learn more about your estate planning options.