Working with Taft Estate Planners

How does the estate planning process work with Taft?

You will work primarily with one of the estate planning lawyers in the group. Because our group has depth, often there will be a second person designated who you can contact if needed. In general, the depth of our group ensures that you will have questions addressed on a timely basis.

We’ll ask you to complete a confidential questionnaire that includes family and asset information. We will schedule a meet­ing with you to discuss your priorities and design a plan. We will work with you so that you stay on track and complete the process by setting timeframes for us to get the job done. Procrastination can be a temptation for clients with this sensitive subject area, and we will work to keep you motivated. You made an investment of time and money to start this valuable process, and we want you to finish.

Drafts and finished documents

We will draft your documents and send them to you for review. Once we’ve discussed any changes, we will put the docu­ments into final form and meet with you to execute them. We can also assist you in completing the other parts of your plan, such as IRA, retirement plan and life insurance beneficiary designations and asset titling.

Business services and succession planning

Taft serves individual clients not only in their estate planning, but also in helping them with business interests they have. We can assist you and point you toward other Taft attorneys and professionals who can meet your personal and business needs, whether in starting or selling a business, or planning for the next generation to inherit and step into the business.

Guardianships and Incapacity

Members of the group represent a wide variety of individuals who serve as guardians or who need, due to incapacity such as dementia, to have a guardian appointed. It is always our hope that Powers of Attorney have already been signed by our clients so that no guardianship is necessary. If that has not occurred, however, or if a controversy arises, we can advise clients on available options.

Trust Services

We advise Trustees, both individual and corporate, on a broad spectrum of trust administration matters. These services include fiduciary tax issues, questions about how distributions should be made to beneficiaries, reporting obligations under state law, and options for reforming, clarifying or terminating trusts. When matters are contested, we call upon our highly experienced Wealth Transfer Litigation group for support.