Virginia Estate Planning Attorneys

Virginia Estate Planning

The importance of estate planning is often misunderstood. Many Virginia residents think they only need an estate plan if they have large estates with numerous assets. However, hiring a Virginia estate planning firm is critical, even if you have a small, “straightforward” estate. Your legal team will help you create a plan that will protect you throughout your life while providing for your loved ones when you pass away.

Estate planning goes beyond managing your financial affairs. PJI Law can also help you handle guardianship and conservatorship issues, so your loved ones will receive the care and services they need. Reach out to our estate law firm today to learn more about your options.

Estate Law Services

PJI Law handles all aspects of estate law. Our services include:

• Trusts
• Wills
• Advance Medical Directives
• Power of Attorney
• Business Succession Planning
• Deed Preparation
• Transfer-on-death Deeds
• Estate Plan Maintenance
• Probate
• Guardianships
• Conservatorships

With our help, you can create a complete estate plan, apply for a conservatorship, and more.

Protect your family with wills and trusts

You want to leave a lasting legacy and provide for your loved ones when you are gone. You can accomplish both by creating an estate plan that is either a will-based plan, or a trust-based plan.

If using only a last will and testament (or simply, a will), you can choose beneficiaries for your property and name a guardian for your minor children. When you pass away, your estate will go through an often lengthy, stressful, and expensive probate process. This is why a will by itself is insufficient, and a comprehensive will-based plan that complements the will must be built to help avoid having your family dealing with your real estate, your financial assets, and your life insurance all going through probate.

Many Virginia residents also create living trusts. Unlike a will, a trust goes into effect immediately. You can transfer property to the trust, and then your loved ones will receive it typically far faster, more easily, and at minimal expense when you pass away. Because the property is transferred into the trust, it doesn’t have to go through the bureaucratic probate process.

While you can choose one plan or the other, the best option is the one you choose after truly understanding the differences from a professional. Consult with a Virginia estate planning professional from PJI Law to discuss your needs.

Guardianships and conservatorships in Virginia

Watching a loved one decline to the point of becoming incapacitated is one of the most emotionally devastating issues you will ever face. When the person can no longer manage their affairs, you can apply for guardianship or conservatorship. While the two terms are often used interchangeably, they are different.

If you are appointed as a guardian for an incapacitated adult, you will handle your loved one’s personal affairs. On the other hand, if you become a conservator, you will manage the individual’s financial affairs. You can be appointed as both the guardian and conservator or serve as one or the other. Your Virginia estate law attorney will go over the obligations for both and help you file the paperwork necessary to petition the court.

Planning for Incapacity

Your Virginia estate planning attorney can help you plan for incapacity. With the right advanced medical directives and durable powers of attorney in place, a loved one you choose can step in and manage your personal, medical, and financial affairs if you become incapacitated. The appointed person can do this without having to petition the court for a conservatorship or guardianship. As difficult as it is to think about becoming incapacitated, planning for it will give you and your family members peace of mind. They won’t have to go through the burden of petitioning the court so that the transition will be much easier.

What if You Don’t Have an Estate Plan?

If you do not have an estate plan in place when you pass away, the court will follow the laws of intestate succession to distribute your property. This means that you will not have any control over who receives your property, or over who is the guardian of your children. Also, the process will be handled in court for approximately a year or perhaps more, and will often require attorney’s fees, filing fees, and other expenses. You can avoid this by having an estate plan in place. This is the only way to have complete control over who receives your assets when you pass away. An iron-clad estate plan can also allow you to avoid family conflicts during the distribution process. Reach out to a Virginia estate law attorney today to begin the process. You don’t know what the future might hold, so it’s never too early to create an estate plan.