Estate Planning Lawyer Fort Collins, CO

Protect Your Future With a Comprehensive Estate Plan

At W.B. Moore Law, we have a combined 40 years of experience in the law. We understand that estate planning is a crucial aspect of life planning that ensures your assets and loved ones are protected and cared for according to your wishes. Our Fort Collins, CO estate planning lawyer specializes in providing personalized and comprehensive estate planning services tailored to meet the unique needs of each client. From drafting wills and trusts to understanding legal and tax implications, we leverage our expertise to secure your legacy and provide peace of mind for you and your family.

As estate planning attorneys, we are committed to delivering exceptional legal guidance and support throughout the entire estate planning process. We recognize the importance of understanding our clients’ goals and concerns, and we work diligently to ensure that their estate plan reflects their desires and provides for their loved ones. Whether you’re looking to establish a new estate plan or update an existing one, our team is here to guide you every step of the way, ensuring that your estate is managed and distributed according to your wishes.

The First Step in Your Estate Plan

When considering the establishment of an estate plan, the first step is often the most crucial and can set the tone for the entire planning process. We specialize in guiding individuals through the intricate journey of estate planning. As experienced Fort Collins attorneys, we understand the complexities involved and the importance of getting started on the right foot. The initial step in any estate planning endeavor is to conduct a thorough inventory of your assets and understand your goals for the future.

Inventory Your Assets

The first thing you will need to do is take a comprehensive inventory of your assets. This includes tangible assets such as real estate, vehicles, jewelry, and other personal property, as well as intangible assets like bank accounts, stocks, retirement accounts, and life insurance policies. Understanding what you own is critical in determining how to effectively distribute your assets and ensure your loved ones are cared for according to your wishes. We assist our clients in Fort Collins, CO, in meticulously cataloging their assets, a fundamental step that forms the foundation of a robust estate plan.

Define Your Estate Planning Goals

After cataloging your assets, the next step is to clarify your estate planning goals. This may include providing for your family’s financial security, ensuring the care of minor children or dependents, minimizing taxes and legal fees, or contributing to charitable causes. Each individual’s goals are unique, and defining these objectives early in the process is crucial. Our team works closely with our clients to identify and prioritize their estate planning goals, ensuring that the resulting plan is tailored to meet their specific needs and aspirations.

Developing a Comprehensive Estate Plan

Developing a comprehensive estate plan involves more than just drafting documents. It requires a strategic approach that considers your financial situation, family dynamics, and legal implications. Our attorneys are dedicated to creating customized estate plans that provide clarity, security, and peace of mind for our clients and their families. We guide you through each decision, explaining the benefits and potential drawbacks, to ensure that your estate plan reflects your wishes accurately and effectively.

The Importance of Updates to Your Estate Plan

Estate planning is not a one-time task but a continuous process that should evolve with your life’s changes. Our attorneys emphasize the significance of revisiting and updating your estate plan to reflect your current circumstances and future objectives. Whether due to changes in family dynamics, financial situations, or laws, ensuring your estate plan remains aligned with your wishes is crucial. An outdated estate plan can lead to confusion, familial disputes, and unintended consequences, undermining the very protection and peace it was meant to provide.

Legal and Tax Implications

Changes in federal and state laws can also impact your estate plan. Tax laws, in particular, are subject to frequent adjustments, and what was a tax-efficient strategy a few years ago may no longer be beneficial today. Our estate planning lawyer can review your estate plan and make changes so that it takes advantage of current laws and regulations. Our firm stays abreast of legal developments to provide our clients with informed advice on optimizing their estate plans for tax purposes and legal protection.

Revocable Living Trusts

Creating a revocable living trust is a critical component of comprehensive estate planning. We  understand the value of this estate planning tool in managing and protecting your assets both during your lifetime and after. A revocable living trust, managed by our estate planning lawyer in Fort Collins, CO, offers flexibility, privacy, and ease of transfer of assets to your beneficiaries, avoiding the often lengthy and public process of probate.

A revocable living trust is a legal document that you create during your lifetime. As the grantor, you can transfer ownership of your assets to the trust and manage them as the trustee. The “revocable” nature of the trust means that you can alter or dissolve the trust at any time, giving you complete control over your assets while you are alive. Upon your passing, the trust becomes irrevocable, and the assets are distributed to the beneficiaries according to your wishes, bypassing the probate process.

Benefits of a Revocable Living Trust

The primary benefits of establishing a revocable living trust include avoiding probate, maintaining privacy, reducing estate taxes, and providing for seamless management of your assets should you become incapacitated. Probate can be time-consuming and costly, but a trust allows for the direct transfer of assets to beneficiaries. Additionally, unlike a will, a trust is not a public document, which keeps your estate matters private. At W.B. Moore Law, our expertise in creating tailored revocable living trusts ensures that your estate planning goals are met with the utmost precision and care.

Choosing Your Trustee

When establishing a revocable living trust, one of the most crucial decisions is choosing a trustworthy and competent trustee. While many opt to serve as their own trustee during their lifetime, naming a successor trustee is essential for managing the trust in the event of your incapacity or death. The trustee’s role is pivotal in managing the trust’s assets, paying debts, and distributing assets to beneficiaries according to the trust’s terms. Our team can help you navigate the complexities of selecting a suitable trustee and understanding their responsibilities.

Funding Your Trust

For a revocable living trust to be effective, it must be properly funded. This means transferring the ownership of your assets—such as real estate, bank accounts, and investments—into the trust. Failure to adequately fund the trust can result in assets passing through probate, undermining one of the trust’s key advantages. Our estate planning lawyers provide comprehensive guidance on funding your trust to ensure it fully serves its intended purpose.

Utilizing a Pour-Over Will

A pour-over will is a critical component of a comprehensive estate plan, serving as a backup to capture any assets accidentally left out of your trust. It specifies that any assets outside the trust at the time of your death should be transferred into the trust, ensuring they are distributed according to your trust’s terms. This tool provides an additional layer of security, safeguarding your intentions and minimizing the risk of probate for these assets.

Differences Between Wills and Trusts

Understanding the distinctions between trusts and wills is fundamental in the field of estate planning. Although both are crucial tools used for planning one’s estate, they serve different purposes and offer unique benefits. We aim to provide our clients with a comprehensive understanding of these differences, ensuring they can make informed decisions about how best to secure their legacy and protect their loved ones.

The Basics of Wills

A will is a legal document that outlines how a person’s assets should be distributed after their death and becomes effective only upon the individual’s death. A will must go through probate, a court-supervised process of authenticating the will, paying debts, and distributing the estate. It is a public document once it enters the probate process, meaning the contents of the will and the details of the estate’s distribution are accessible to the public.

The Basics of Trusts

A trust is a legal arrangement where one party (the trustee) holds and manages assets for the benefit of another (the beneficiary). It can be effective during the grantor’s lifetime (in the case of a living trust) or upon their death. A properly funded trust can bypass the probate process, allowing for a potentially quicker, private, and sometimes more cost-effective distribution of assets. Trusts can offer more control over when and how assets are distributed to beneficiaries, such as stipulations for age, education, or specific milestones.

Avoiding Probate

One of the most significant advantages of a trust over a will is its ability to avoid probate. The probate process can be lengthy, costly, and public. Trusts, particularly revocable living trusts, allow assets to be transferred to beneficiaries without court intervention, preserving privacy and potentially reducing estate administration costs.

Control and Flexibility

Trusts provide a level of control and flexibility that wills cannot. For instance, a trust can specify conditions under which beneficiaries receive their inheritance (e.g., reaching a certain age or achieving a specific goal, like graduating from college). This detailed control helps ensure that the grantor’s wishes are executed precisely as intended, even long after their passing.

Privacy Concerns

For those concerned with privacy, a trust is often the preferred tool. Unlike wills, which become public records through the probate process, trusts remain private documents. This confidentiality can be crucial for individuals who wish to keep the details of their estate and beneficiaries out of the public eye.

Fort Collins Estate Planning Infographic

Fort Collins Estate Planning Statistics

According to national statistics, only 33 percent of Americans have an estate plan in place. Unfortunately, without a solid estate plan, many estates end up in probate, resulting in costs of more than $2 billion. Not only is probate expensive, but it can also take years for any issues to be resolved, leaving beneficiaries without the funds that the decedent had planned for them to have.

Fort Collins Estate Planning FAQs

What are the requirements for a valid will in Fort Collins?

In Fort Collins, CO, for a will to be considered valid, it must meet specific legal requirements set forth by Colorado state law. The person creating the will (testator) must be at least 18 years old and of sound mind. The will must be in writing and signed by the testator or by another person in the testator’s presence and at their direction. Additionally, the will must be witnessed by at least two individuals, both of whom are present to witness the signing by the testator or the testator’s acknowledgment of the signature or will. These witnesses must also sign the will in the presence of the testator and each other, making the document legally binding.

Can digital assets be included in my estate plan?

Yes, digital assets can and should be included in your estate plan in Fort Collins, CO. Digital assets include anything from online bank accounts and social media accounts to digital music, photo libraries, and cryptocurrency. Colorado law allows you to designate a digital executor or include specific instructions in your estate plan regarding how you wish these digital assets to be handled, accessed, or distributed upon your death. It’s important to provide detailed information and access instructions to ensure your digital executor can manage or distribute these assets according to your wishes.

How does the probate process work?

The probate process in Colorado involves the court-supervised administration of a deceased person’s estate. This process includes proving the validity of the will (if one exists), taking an inventory and appraisal of the deceased’s assets, paying off debts and taxes, and distributing the remaining assets to the rightful heirs or beneficiaries. The complexity and duration of the probate process can vary significantly, depending on whether the deceased had a well-structured estate plan and the size and complexity of the estate. In cases where there is no will, the estate is distributed according to Colorado’s intestacy laws.

Are there any estate taxes in Fort Collins?

As of the latest information available up to April 2023, Colorado does not impose a state-level estate tax. However, estates may still be subject to federal estate taxes if they exceed the federal estate tax exemption amount, which is subject to change from year to year. It’s essential for individuals in Fort Collins, CO, to consider the impact of federal estate taxes when planning their estate and to explore strategies that may help minimize the estate’s tax burden for their heirs.

How can I ensure my healthcare wishes are respected if I become incapacitated?

To ensure your healthcare wishes are respected if you become incapacitated in Fort Collins you should consider creating advance healthcare directives as part of your estate plan. This includes a Medical Durable Power of Attorney, which allows you to appoint someone to make healthcare decisions on your behalf, and a Living Will, which outlines your preferences regarding end-of-life care and life-sustaining treatment. These documents provide clear instructions to healthcare providers and your appointed decision-maker, ensuring your healthcare wishes are followed even when you cannot communicate them yourself.

W.B. Moore Law, Fort Collins Estate Planning Lawyer

4025 Automation Way Building C, Suite 1 Fort Collins, CO 80525

Contact Our Fort Collins Estate Planning Lawyer Today

We are committed to providing detailed and personalized estate planning services. Our approach includes:

• Estate Plan Reviews: Offering periodic reviews of your estate plan to adapt to changes in your asset portfolio or personal circumstances.
• Customized Solutions: Tailoring strategies, such as drafting specific trust amendments or creating new trust documents, to include omitted assets.
• Educational Guidance: Educating our clients on the importance of comprehensive asset documentation and the role of a pour-over will.

Navigating the complexities of estate planning laws in Fort Collins, CO, requires a nuanced understanding of both state and federal regulations to ensure your estate plan is robust, legally binding, and reflective of your wishes. At W.B. Moore Law, we are dedicated to guiding our clients through this intricate process, offering personalized advice and crafting estate plans that address every aspect of their legacy, from asset distribution and healthcare directives to digital asset management and tax planning. After a life-changing injury, I opened this practice in 2020 so that I could represent each client and their specific needs. Our commitment to excellence and our deep knowledge of estate planning laws ensure that our clients can achieve peace of mind, knowing their estate is well-prepared for the future, and their loved ones are protected. For help, contact our estate planning lawyer in Fort Collins today.

Fort Collins Estate Planning Lawyer Google Review

“Bill Moore, is one of the most incredible people I have ever met. Sometimes working with an attorney can feel overwhelming and over your head. But that is not the experience I had with Bill. He explained everything clearly in ways that I could understand and laid out the process of what I needed to do in a logical and easy to follow steps. He truly cares about his clients and their goals. I highly recommend him for all your estate planning and business law needs!” – Ambar R.