Put Your Wishes in Writing
Your last will should be an integrated part of your estate plan. It may name your revocable or "living" trust, or it may be stand-alone. Your will can include nomination of guardians for minor children, and instructions for burial or cremation.
Will preparation counsel for individuals and families throughout Holliston and the MetroWest area.
A Will is a Foundation of Your Estate Plan.
A last will and testament is one of the foundational documents used in estate planning. It allows you to express important wishes about the distribution of your property, the administration of your estate and, when applicable, the care of minor children.
At Deland Law Office, wills are considered as part of the larger picture of your family, assets and overall estate plan. The right documents depend on your circumstances, and a will may work alongside trusts, beneficiary designations and other planning tools.
What Can a Will Accomplish?
Name Your Personal Representative
A will can identify the person you want to serve as your personal representative, also commonly called an executor, to handle the administration of your estate.
Identify Your Beneficiaries
Your will can identify who you want to receive property that is distributed through the will and provide direction for how your wishes should be carried out.
Address Specific Property
A will can provide instructions concerning assets that are intended to pass under its terms, subject to applicable law and the overall structure of your estate plan.
Nominate a Guardian
For parents of minor children, a will can include a nomination for a guardian if both parents are unable to care for the children.
Provide Direction
A clearly prepared will can give your family and personal representative greater clarity about your intentions.
Clarity for the People You Leave Behind
A will gives you an opportunity to put important decisions into writing rather than leaving those decisions entirely to the default rules that may apply when someone dies without a will.
It can provide direction regarding beneficiaries, personal representatives, and guardianship nominations, while helping your family understand your intentions.
Clarity
Put important wishes into a formal legal document.
Direction
Give your personal representative guidance about your intentions.
Family Planning
Address guardianship nominations for minor children where appropriate.
Control
Express your wishes concerning property that passes under the will.
Preparedness
Create a plan before your family has to make difficult decisions without knowing your wishes.
What Happens if You Die Without a Will?
When someone dies without a valid will, they are considered to have died intestate. In Massachusetts, the state's intestacy laws determine which relatives may inherit and how the estate is distributed. That process may not reflect what the person would have chosen for their family or property.
Plan Ahead With a Complete Estate Plan
Without a will, you do not get to provide the same level of direction that you can provide through an appropriately prepared estate plan.
Note: Intestacy outcomes depend on your specific family circumstances under applicable Massachusetts law.
Even a Trust-Based Plan May Include a Will
Having a living trust does not necessarily mean that a will is unnecessary. For many estate plans, a pour-over will is used alongside a revocable living trust. The pour-over will generally provides that certain assets remaining outside the trust at death are transferred to the trust through the estate administration process, subject to applicable law.
A Coordinated Plan
A complete estate plan should consider how your will, trust, beneficiary designations, and asset ownership work together.
Note: Whether a pour-over will is appropriate for you depends on your circumstances and the structure of your overall plan.
Will + Trust Planning
Your Will Should Work With the Rest of Your Plan
Wills + Trusts
Consider how your will works alongside your trust documents.
Beneficiary Designations
Certain assets pass through beneficiary designations rather than through the will.
Property Ownership
How property is titled can affect how it passes at death.
Minor Children
Guardianship nominations and planning for children's inheritance may require additional consideration.
Life Changes
Marriage, divorce, children, grandchildren, and significant asset changes can create reasons to review the plan.
Your Will Should Keep Up With Your Life
Family Changes
Marriage, divorce, or the birth or adoption of a child.
Loss of a Key Person
Death of a beneficiary or personal representative named in your will.
Financial Changes
Major changes in assets, retirement, or moving to another state.
Family & Guardianship
Changes in family relationships or in your guardianship wishes.
Your Life Changes. Your Estate Plan Should Be Able to Change With It.
As your family, assets and priorities evolve, your will and estate plan can be reviewed and updated to continue reflecting your circumstances and wishes.
Our Approach
A Will Should Reflect More Than a List of Assets
Listen
Understand your family, priorities, assets, and concerns.
Explain
Make the legal and practical implications easier to understand.
Plan
Create documents that work together as part of an appropriately structured estate plan.
Ready When You Are
Format
In Office or Zoom
Consultation Fee
Usually $400
Future-Proofing Your Strategy
Tailored Legal Solutions
Estate Planning
A coordinated plan for your assets, family, and future.
Elder Law
Guidance on long-term care and asset protection as you age.
Planning for Children
Guardianship nominations and trusts for the next generation.
Put Your Wishes in Writing.
You cannot predict every circumstance the future may bring, but thoughtful planning can help you give your family clearer direction. A properly prepared will can be an important part of that plan.
Deland Law Office
1660 Washington Street
Holliston, MA 01746