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Speaking as an estate planning attorney, each attorney sets their own prices. Some attorneys do not want to write just a will and the like and will not work with you unless you get one of their packages. Other attorneys set the price high enough such that they think it adequately values their time, expoerience and consultation that is involved. I have seen lawyers that charge $2000 for a will and all of the consultation involved. Other attorneys refuse to rely on what a prior attorney did and will want to redo the entire thing.
As to guardianship (which protects your child if you pass away), what happens if you and your spouse are incapacitated but have not passed away? It sounds like a temporary guardianship could help.
The changes that you are talking about are relatively minor and should not cost all that much. However, there have been some significant changes over the last few years that would require additional changes to your plan that you have not thought about. I am happy to talk with you about this in more detail if you like. My number is 410-693-7323 and my email address is acarducci@legalhelpmaryland.com.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
As to guardianship (which protects your child if you pass away), what happens if you and your spouse are incapacitated but have not passed away? It sounds like a temporary guardianship could help.
The changes that you are talking about are relatively minor and should not cost all that much. However, there have been some significant changes over the last few years that would require additional changes to your plan that you have not thought about. I am happy to talk with you about this in more detail if you like. My number is 410-693-7323 and my email address is acarducci@legalhelpmaryland.com.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
not a bad idea. It is certainly better than nothing. However, if you look at any of my articles you will notice that I see flaws in using such software. You pay an attorney not as a drafter of documents but because of the attorney's guidance and his experience in dealing with people that have a similar situation as you do. In some cases, having a will is enough. In some cases, it is not enough. Is your will software package going to advise you about all of the issues involved in a will or what each part means, etc....? Not likely.
Hello, Anonymous. My name is Anthony Carducci and I am an estate planning attorney. Obviously, I am also a member of this site. If you search this website, you might find some articles that I have written in the not too distant past dealing with wills, how to choose guardians for your kids and similar topics. It would be my pleasure to answer any questions that you might have regarding wills, trusts, probate, protecting your kids and family, etc.... So, let's take this one step at a time since we do not know each other yet. Give me a call at 410-693-7323 for a no obligation, no cost telephone consultation. Nothing is off limits. Even if you and I never work together, you will at least get your initial questions answered.
I am not suggesting that CPS would ever not release the kids to the appropriate guardians or family members. As to CPS, I am merely suggesting that if the police cannot find local family to leave the kids with, they are basically going to have no choice but to call in CPS to take the kids for at least a short period of time. If they cannot find local family/guardians/friends, I do not have any problem with that as it is usually for the kids' benefit. However, most parents that I know would prefer not to have their kids with anyone other than those they trust most. So, it is better to either name local guardians or work with a lawyer such as myself in getting short-term temporary guardians named while your non-local/out of state long-term guardians make it into town to get custody of your kids. There is no fear here-I am only trying to point out some things that parents should be on the lookout for. For me, this is about being helpful and giving parents the information that they need to make empowered decisions for their family.
By the way, I am stunned that a professional such as a certified financial planner would not seek out the advice of a qualified attorney for their will! Imagine someone saying to a financial planner that they knew that they should invest some of their assets but decided they would just purchase a software system to appropriately allocate their money. My guess is that virtually any financial planner would suggest this is a bad idea because professionals such as your husband have training, knowledge and experience that most do not have. The same is true of attorneys. You are not paying for documents when you hire an attorney. You are paying for advice and you are paying to have the ramifications of different choices explained.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
888-628-2220
acarducci@msn.com
By the way, I am stunned that a professional such as a certified financial planner would not seek out the advice of a qualified attorney for their will! Imagine someone saying to a financial planner that they knew that they should invest some of their assets but decided they would just purchase a software system to appropriately allocate their money. My guess is that virtually any financial planner would suggest this is a bad idea because professionals such as your husband have training, knowledge and experience that most do not have. The same is true of attorneys. You are not paying for documents when you hire an attorney. You are paying for advice and you are paying to have the ramifications of different choices explained.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
888-628-2220
acarducci@msn.com
Just for argument sake, let's say that you are right (even though you are not) about points 3-7 being misleading, the other points are good reasons alone to use an attorney. As to points 3-7, they are all verifiable so I encourage anyone that takes issue with them to look them up rather than just come on here and post that they don't accept them. Simple questions:
1. What happens to your kids if you and your spouse die and there are no reachable family members that can get the kids within an hour or so? Of course the police will call in CPS for the safety and well-being of the kids. My point here is that naming guardians in your will is not enough unless they are local and possibly that might not even be enough. As a lawyer, I do something extra to handle this.
2. Why do you think that it will not take 9 months to go through probate? Technically, no distribution of assets is supposed to be made until probate is complete. Sure, some of the assets can be used on the kids during this time, but the body of the assets will not get dispersed for at least 9 months even in a drama-free situation. What happens if your creditors or disgruntled family members fight over your kids and assets? In that situation, it will not take 9 months. It will take years. There are ways to avoid probate entirely, but not if all you have is a will.
3. Call the Register of wills in DC or in your particular county in Maryland/Virginia and ask them about probate. They will tell you that once probate is open an individual can go down to the courthouse and see what has been filed. You can even see some of this stuff online.
Trust me when I tell that these matters are verifiable. To the original poster of this thread, I am still more than willing to sit down with you and talk about these issues in a no-obligation manner.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
888-628-2220
1. What happens to your kids if you and your spouse die and there are no reachable family members that can get the kids within an hour or so? Of course the police will call in CPS for the safety and well-being of the kids. My point here is that naming guardians in your will is not enough unless they are local and possibly that might not even be enough. As a lawyer, I do something extra to handle this.
2. Why do you think that it will not take 9 months to go through probate? Technically, no distribution of assets is supposed to be made until probate is complete. Sure, some of the assets can be used on the kids during this time, but the body of the assets will not get dispersed for at least 9 months even in a drama-free situation. What happens if your creditors or disgruntled family members fight over your kids and assets? In that situation, it will not take 9 months. It will take years. There are ways to avoid probate entirely, but not if all you have is a will.
3. Call the Register of wills in DC or in your particular county in Maryland/Virginia and ask them about probate. They will tell you that once probate is open an individual can go down to the courthouse and see what has been filed. You can even see some of this stuff online.
Trust me when I tell that these matters are verifiable. To the original poster of this thread, I am still more than willing to sit down with you and talk about these issues in a no-obligation manner.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
888-628-2220
Great question. Please do not hold it against me that I am a lawyer that is responding to your question (just a little lawyer humor). Anyway, you mentioned the $1 million threshold. This is for people that need to do planning to minimize the impact of estate taxes. In your situation estate taxes do not apply. However, there are still good reasons for you to use an attorney rather than the software:
1. Sure, using this software and putting something into place is much better than not having a will at all. It is better than not having anything in place. Any piece of software designed to write a will can do so and will always be cheaper than using an attorney. However, when you hire an attorney, you are not hiring that person to just create form documents. You are hiring that person for the advice that will be provided to you and for the experience gained from school and from working with people similar to you.
2. Often the software does not have everything that you need included in a will. When you use a piece of software, it cannot advise you as to the ramifications of what you have written. When you use a piece of software can you be sure that it has been tailored to your state's rules? The programs sometimes do not include little details that can end up costing your estate several hundred to several thousand dollars during probate. It is better to pay a little more for an attorney to draft your plan correctly than save a few dollars on the software and then have to redo whatever the program did incorrectly.
3. A will does nothing to protect your kids from being taken into protective custody by Child Protective Services if you and your spouse are in an accident or something and your guardians cannot be reached or if they are not local.
4. Upon your death, a will is a public document that anyone can go to the register of wills office and review. So, someone could see what assets your kids could be inheriting and try to prey upon them.
5. If you only write a will, then your assets will go through probate, which means that it will take at least 9 months for your assets to get to your kids or to whoever you want to inherit them. This is also the time when creditors come in and can say that you owe them money and should be paid out of your estate. Lawyers know how to avoid probate and can help you with this.
6. If all you do is write a will and your kids are minors when you pass away, then at 18 your kids will have their assets distributed outright to them. Will your kids be mature enough at 18 to handle the assets that they inherit?
7. The software will not update your plan when the law changes.
If you would like to talk about this in more detail, I would be happy to sit down with you for free. Please email me at acarducci@msn.com or phone me at 888-628-2220.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
1. Sure, using this software and putting something into place is much better than not having a will at all. It is better than not having anything in place. Any piece of software designed to write a will can do so and will always be cheaper than using an attorney. However, when you hire an attorney, you are not hiring that person to just create form documents. You are hiring that person for the advice that will be provided to you and for the experience gained from school and from working with people similar to you.
2. Often the software does not have everything that you need included in a will. When you use a piece of software, it cannot advise you as to the ramifications of what you have written. When you use a piece of software can you be sure that it has been tailored to your state's rules? The programs sometimes do not include little details that can end up costing your estate several hundred to several thousand dollars during probate. It is better to pay a little more for an attorney to draft your plan correctly than save a few dollars on the software and then have to redo whatever the program did incorrectly.
3. A will does nothing to protect your kids from being taken into protective custody by Child Protective Services if you and your spouse are in an accident or something and your guardians cannot be reached or if they are not local.
4. Upon your death, a will is a public document that anyone can go to the register of wills office and review. So, someone could see what assets your kids could be inheriting and try to prey upon them.
5. If you only write a will, then your assets will go through probate, which means that it will take at least 9 months for your assets to get to your kids or to whoever you want to inherit them. This is also the time when creditors come in and can say that you owe them money and should be paid out of your estate. Lawyers know how to avoid probate and can help you with this.
6. If all you do is write a will and your kids are minors when you pass away, then at 18 your kids will have their assets distributed outright to them. Will your kids be mature enough at 18 to handle the assets that they inherit?
7. The software will not update your plan when the law changes.
If you would like to talk about this in more detail, I would be happy to sit down with you for free. Please email me at acarducci@msn.com or phone me at 888-628-2220.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
Go to retirementliving.com. They have a section called taxes by state that will let you pull up MD and VA and any other state that you are interested in. It would seem that you come out ahead in VA, but not by a huge amount. Speaking as an estate attorney, it should also be noted that VA has no estate nor inheritance tax while MD does. At your level of HHI, you or your heirs will run into those estate and inheritance taxes in MD, which will take a bite out of the net worth of your estate. MD has also demonstrated an interest in raising taxes lately, albeit on those making $1 million or more, and approximately 3,000 of those people left MD for VA. If interested, I would be more than happy to talk with you about estate and inheritance tax issues.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
www.legalhelpmaryland.com
410-693-7323
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
www.legalhelpmaryland.com
410-693-7323
As an estate attorney, I can tell you that this is a great question to ask. The other post is correct. Check with your state's bar. The DC bar allows you to check into an attorney right on their website. I do not know if MD and VA allow you to do it in that way. However, this is not going to tell you anything about the quality of the lawyer. It will only tell you if the attorney is currently licensed in that state and if any complaints were filed against the attorney. When seeking an estate attorney, you should refer to the article that I posted on the front page of the DC Urban Moms website (http://www.dcurbanmom.com/weblog/2012/07/09/top-7-things-to-know-before-hiring-a-wills-trusts-or-estate-attorney). If you are interested in talking to me about how I might be able to help you with your estate planning needs, then please contact me at:
acarducci@msn.com; anthony.carducci@legalhelpmaryland.com; or by phone at 410-693-7323.
acarducci@msn.com; anthony.carducci@legalhelpmaryland.com; or by phone at 410-693-7323.
I included an answer to this question in my first post on the front page of the website. You do want to name people that share your values. You do want to specifically exclude those family members that would be a bad influence on your kids. You want to be careful about naming a married couple in case they divorce. Don't name the couple solely because you like one family member but feel you must name their spouse as well. You should name temporary local guardians in case your long term guardians are a few hours away so as to prevent your kids from being taken out of the family home.
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
acarducci@msn.com; anthony.carducci@legalhelpmaryland.com
410-693-7323
Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
acarducci@msn.com; anthony.carducci@legalhelpmaryland.com
410-693-7323
I am an estate attorney and am happy to answer someonf the questions that you posted.
You asked: Is it ok to use nolo or legalzoom to create a will? It will hold up, right?
Yes, it is valid, but make sure you sign it and have two witness sign it after watching you sign. Better yet, have it notarized.
You asked: Is this wise? (to use an online will maker software)?
As I posted earlier, it is better than no will at all. However, you never know if there will be family disputes. We would like to think that our families would not fight over money, assets, kids, etc.... but you never know for sure. Also, if something did happen to you and your husband and you left everything to your son, do you know what that entails? The assets/will/everything goes through a process called probate. There will be a significant delay of a few months in getting some of your assets to your son/his guardian. Do you want to avoid this delay? Most of my clients do want to avoid such a delay. Probate is a public process. This means that once your son does inherit predators might be able to take advantage of his recent inheritance. The guardian would be in charge of these assets until your son turned 18 because children under 18 cannot own assets. Then, at 18, your son would get all of the assets outright at 18. Would he be responsible enough to handle these assets at 18? Most kids are not, but I do not know your son and he might be very responsible.
If you would like to email me privately or call me to discuss these matters in more detail, I will make myself available to answer your questions. You can reach me at acarducci@msn.com or by phone at 410-693-7323.
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
You asked: Is it ok to use nolo or legalzoom to create a will? It will hold up, right?
Yes, it is valid, but make sure you sign it and have two witness sign it after watching you sign. Better yet, have it notarized.
You asked: Is this wise? (to use an online will maker software)?
As I posted earlier, it is better than no will at all. However, you never know if there will be family disputes. We would like to think that our families would not fight over money, assets, kids, etc.... but you never know for sure. Also, if something did happen to you and your husband and you left everything to your son, do you know what that entails? The assets/will/everything goes through a process called probate. There will be a significant delay of a few months in getting some of your assets to your son/his guardian. Do you want to avoid this delay? Most of my clients do want to avoid such a delay. Probate is a public process. This means that once your son does inherit predators might be able to take advantage of his recent inheritance. The guardian would be in charge of these assets until your son turned 18 because children under 18 cannot own assets. Then, at 18, your son would get all of the assets outright at 18. Would he be responsible enough to handle these assets at 18? Most kids are not, but I do not know your son and he might be very responsible.
If you would like to email me privately or call me to discuss these matters in more detail, I will make myself available to answer your questions. You can reach me at acarducci@msn.com or by phone at 410-693-7323.
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
Law Office of Anthony S. Carducci, PC
As a wills, trusts and estates lawyer and in my experience, there are likely some issues that you are unaware of when dealing with things like what happens to your kids if you are incapacitated, guardians for the kids, and how to divide assets. It is never "necessary" to hire an attorney, but it does seem like a good idea to hire a professional. You would not do surgery on yourself nor have your financial planner fix your car, right? I posted some free information about this topic-you can find it on the main page of this site. If you would like to email me privately or call, I would be happy to answer any of your questions about this topic.
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
410-693-7323
acarducci@msn.com
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
410-693-7323
acarducci@msn.com