Estate Planning Mistakes - Number Nineteen

It is important the original Will is maintained in a secure place. If my clients keep the original, it must be either in a safety deposit box or a fireproof safe at their home. Otherwise, the attorney preparing the Will may maintain it. The original is needed at the time of death.

BUT, what happens if the original Will can not be found. You have to overcome the court's presumption that the Will was intentionally destroyed by the deceased. You would have to show that the original was not with the deceased. Further, you would have to present a photocopy is available and have person who wrote the Will, the attorney, available to testify as to the contents of the Will.

SO, you DO NOT want to misplace the original Will. It will cost you if you do. Contact us so that we can guide you through the estate planning process.

Durable Power of Attorney

I received a call the other day from the daughter of one of my clients. Her parents have been my clients for about 5 years. The wife, an avid swimmer in her late 70s, was the caregiver of her husband who now has advanced dementia. Unexpectantly, the wife died and with her the location of the power of attorney for her husband which had been removed from the safety deposit box since she had been using it given his illness. The daughter was the alternate agent.

In my practice, I counsel my clients to maintain their documents in one of 2 places, a safety deposit box or a safe at home that is waterproof and fireproof. My clients had followed that advise. With the Durable Power of Attorney, also referred to as the General Power of Attorney, it is important to have more than 1 original, 3 is preferable. Fortunately, for my clients' daughter, I maintain one of the 3 originals. Without the power of attorney, the daughter would have had to institute costly guardianship procedures in order to handle her father's affairs. Her parents' advanced planning alleviated that expense.

It is important to seek legal advise and guidance because it is not just the preparation of documents that is important but the details of the process. Our experience dictates the importance. Leave your comments here or contact us at http://www.ythlaw.com/