Fort Worth Estate Planning Lawyer

Texas Estate Planning Attorneys Protecting Your Future

Estate planning is an important part of preparing for the future and protecting your assets. It involves making decisions about how to manage and distribute your estate both during your life and after your death, and it can also address issues related to your medical and personal care as you reach an advanced age. An estate plan can include a variety of documents, such as wills, trusts, powers of attorney, living wills, healthcare directives, and beneficiary designations. As you address these matters, legal help from an experienced estate planning attorney can be invaluable.

With our experience in estate law and our familiarity with the rules and regulations pertaining to estate matters in Texas, Daniel R. Bacalis, P.C. can provide guidance to help you ensure that your and your family's needs will be met, no matter what happens in the future. Our attorney can provide peace of mind that all legal procedures have been followed correctly when it comes to establishing or updating your estate plan. Our goal is to make sure that your family will be able to meet whatever challenges you may face in the future and that you and your loved ones will have the legal and financial resources to meet your needs.

Addressing Estate Planning Issues in Fort Worth

When creating or updating an estate plan, it is important to consider all legal issues that may arise. Estate planning involves creating a plan for managing and distributing assets both during one's life and after death, as well as making decisions regarding medical care and personal care should the individual become incapacitated.

An estate plan can include:

• Wills - A last will and testament is a legal document that forms the backbone of an estate plan. It will allow a person to specify how their estate is to be handled after death, including who will manage the estate, who will receive assets from the estate, and any other conditions or instructions. A will can be used to provide for family members, friends, charities, and others in accordance with the estate owner's wishes.
• Trusts - A trust is a legal entity that allows the estate owner to put their assets into the control of a trustee for management and distribution according to their wishes. Trusts can be used to protect one's estate from creditors, taxes, and other claims, as well as to provide for loved ones or charities. Depending on a family's specific needs, different types of trusts may be used, including living trusts, irrevocable trusts, asset protection trusts, special needs trusts, or charitable trusts.
• Powers of attorney - An estate owner can appoint someone else to manage their affairs in the event that they become incapacitated or unable to make decisions for themselves. A financial power of attorney allows the estate owner to appoint someone to manage their finances in the event that they become unable to do so or in certain situations, such as to complete a major transaction. A medical power of attorney allows a person to appoint someone else to make decisions about healthcare and medical treatment on their behalf in situations where they are unable to do so, such as when they are in a coma or have been diagnosed with dementia.
• Living wills and healthcare directives - Living wills are documents that provide instructions on how a person wants medical care handled in the event that they are diagnosed with a terminal illness and are unable to make decisions about their care or communicate their wishes to others. Other healthcare directives, such as do not resuscitate (DNR) orders or declarations for mental health treatment, may be used to ensure that a person's wishes regarding medical treatment and personal care will be followed.
• Beneficiary designations - It can be important for a person to specify who will receive their assets upon their death, either directly or through a trust. Beneficiary designations may be used in life insurance policies, retirement accounts, or certain other types of assets, and they provide estate owners with the ability to ensure that their estate is distributed according to their wishes.

Contact Our Fort Worth Estate Planning Attorney

By engaging an experienced estate planning attorney to address matters related to your assets, your healthcare, and your wishes for how matters should be handled during your life and after your death, you can have the assurance that your and your family's needs will be met. At Daniel R. Bacalis, P.C., we can help you determine the best options for your situation, and we can ensure that all legal documents in your estate plan are properly prepared. To arrange a free consultation and learn more about how we can help you put a comprehensive estate plan in place, contact our office today at 817-498-4105.