Estate planning is something that everyone should do in their lifetime. However, many people put off estate planning in Raleigh NC. Often they choose to wait until they feel like it’s the right time to plan for their estate. Unfortunately, should you pass without having an estate plan, that could leave loved ones in a difficult position.
Over the course of the last couple of blogs we have been discussing the various aspects of estate planning. Within an estate plan, there should be documents that help loved ones know your plans for the future of your care, finances, and belongings. Previously, we’ve talked about wills and trusts. Today, we will discuss powers of attorney.
A power of attorney is a legal document that should name someone to act on your behalf. This includes financial, health, and legal matters. Choosing someone to give power of attorney is often complicated. It’s important to choose someone you trust to make decisions with your best interest in mind. This person doesn’t have to be an estate lawyer. It can be a spouse, adult son or daughter, best friend, or other trusted person that you can rely on.
With a power of attorney, this person may be able to do anything you would do for yourself. This includes writing or cashing checks, submitting tax forms, buying or selling real estate, entering into business contracts, or overseeing business operations. However, a power of attorney is restricted from doing anything that you outline within your document.
There are two different types of a power of attorney. Each of them have different responsibilities. In most cases, individuals choose to have both a durable power of attorney and health care power of attorney. In our next blog post, we will talk about a durable power of attorney and what responsibilities the person you choose may have.
Be sure to join us next time and visit back with our previous blog posts so that you can learn more about the various aspects of estate planning in Raleigh NC. That way, when you meet with our law firm you’ll be ready to create your estate plan.
Eldreth Law Firm, PLLC | Estate Planning in Raleigh NC
Estate planning in Raleigh NC is important. It’s a way to ensure your loved ones are cared for after you’ve passed. It’s also a way to make sure your best interests are taken care of, as well. It’s important that one not pass without having these documents created. Doing so can result in a court case that will leave your loved ones stuck in probate court. This could be not only time consuming, but expensive as well.
Remember, if you don’t have an estate plan in place or haven’t reviewed yours in several years, now might be the best time to start. Our estate lawyer in Raleigh NC is here to help you get your estate planning in order and ready should you pass in an untimely manner or become incapacitated at some point. It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to an estate plan. Contact our office.
As always, feel free to contact us at our office to schedule a consultation with if you are looking for a lawyer to represent you in other legal matters. We are here to assist you with small business needs, trademarking, copyrighting and DWI issues.
