Avon Estate Planning Attorneys

Planning the Future For Your Loved Ones After You Are Gone

The estate planning process is often viewed as a complicated and overwhelming process that forces you to sit down and face your mortality. The act of ensuring your family members are well cared for after you pass will cause you to think about life when you are gone.

Estate planning does not have to be complicated. An experienced estate planning attorney can make this process easier for you. Our attorneys have seen what works and what doesn’t work and can advise you during this process. You can have peace of mind, enabling you to sleep easily, knowing that your wishes are being honored after you pass.

If you think it is time to start planning your estate, or you have been trying to do it for a while, and you’re not sure what to do next, call 440-530-9166 to schedule a free consultation with Hallett Legal Group, LLC.

Read more about how we help prepare our clients to navigate the important decisions everyone faces when planning their end-of-life wishes.

How May We Help You?

We provide thoughtful legal advice that will protect you and your family’s interests in the areas of estate planning and probate.

Estate Planning

One of the most important steps a person can take is to ensure that their final property and health care wishes are honored.

Probate

The process by which a personal representative becomes authorized to transfer a deceased person’s assets to designated beneficiaries.

Advance Healthcare Directives

Creating a healthcare power of attorney, living will, and HIPAA release lets medical professionals and your family know your wishes regarding your medical care

Inheritance

An attorney who understands probate law can help ensure that you receive your inheritance according to your loved one’s wishes.

Power of Attorney

You need a power of attorney you can trust to make decisions on your behalf that align with your morals and wishes. We can help you with your options.

Trusts

Trusts are a great way to avoid probate, control the distribution of your assets, and care for minor children if you pass away.

Revocable Living Trusts

This trust allows you to manage your assets during your lifetime and designate who will receive those assets after your death. You, the trustor, can revoke and change it at any time.

Wills

Work with an experienced probate lawyer to create a will that abides by your decisions. Don’t hope for the best; guarantee it!

Living Wills

A living will, which is different from a last will and testament, allows you to make important decisions regarding the end of life healthcare should you become permanently unconscious.

What is Estate Planning?

In simple words, estate planning controls how your wealth, assets, and health will be managed should you become incapacitated or pass away. Estate planning includes naming heirs who will inherit the assets you will give them. You also have the opportunity to plan the guardianship of your minor children.

This is your opportunity to create your advance directives, which outline how you would like care administered to you should you become incapacitated and unable to make decisions regarding your healthcare.

To die without a will is called dying “intestate.” When someone dies intestate, the probate court ensures that assets are equally divided between a person’s next of kin. Unfortunately, this may mean that unrelated loved ones do not receive anything, and relatives who have no relationship with the deceased receive a share.

Clients Success Stories

Professional, kind, attentive and thorough. Exactly what everyone wants in a probate attorney. Thank you so much for your help!

-Marianne T.

My thanks and appreciation to Steve Trenta for his ability to explain, share, and walk my dad through the process of estate planning. This was something we had no idea where to begin and who to trust.

-Donanfer M.

I had been recommended to Matt from my financial planner and I’m so grateful that she did. I needed help getting documents redone and created for my grandma in terms of her estate planning – being as young as I am I have never looked into estate planning and didn’t know much of what to do.

-lillia R.

What is an Advance Directive?

An important aspect of estate planning is an “advance directive.” This is a guide that your family and medical professionals will use to make important decisions regarding your healthcare should you be unable to make those decisions yourself.

Advance directives cover many medical aspects, such as care you would like to receive and care you want to avoid. Some people may want to deny blood transfusions for religious reasons, and an advance directive would instruct a healthcare provider to avoid doing so.

When creating an advance directive, you will assign someone to act as your healthcare attorney, someone who can make important decisions regarding your care when you are unable to.

It is important to outline your wishes in an advance directive. This is your opportunity to let future healthcare professionals know what treatments you are okay with and which ones you would like to avoid. This also allows you to take the pressure off of your family when they are unsure of what your wishes are.

Meet The Attorneys

Matthew H. Hallett, Esq.

Founder

Steve Trenta, Esq.

Attorney

What is a Trust?

While creating your will, you may also wish to create a trust. A trust is a legal arrangement where one party, known as the trustor, gives another party, known as a trustee, the right to manage assets for a third party called a beneficiary. In most situations, the creator of the trust is the initial trustee. You can assign the people who you are confident to be the trustee when you are no longer the trustee. It is common for a beneficiary of the trust to also be your successor trustee.

Trusts help the estate planning process by controlling the distribution of assets, minimizing the taxes paid on your assets, and, when properly funded, avoiding probate. All of these benefits can lessen the stress of those we leave behind.

It is not necessary to create a trust when creating an estate plan, but it is an added layer of protection that guarantees your wealth is being distributed the way you intended and protects your family from further suffering.

Why Choose Us?

Plan For A Future

We work with our clients to help them plan for a future they will not be alive to witness. Taking the emotional stress off of your family by simplifying the distribution of assets can help alleviate some of the stress your family will experience when you pass away.

Effortless Modifications

A living trust can help your loved ones avoid probate by providing for your beneficiaries more efficiently. For the most part, living trusts can be easily modified, and assets can be added to them effortlessly. Living trusts allow even more control over your assets and how they are managed.

Avoid Surprises

The estate planning process can be overwhelming. We work with our clients every step of the way, explaining the process and making sure their wishes are translated properly to avoid surprises and unintended outcomes. We work to make the process as easy as possible.

Healthcare Wishes

Planning for your end-of-life healthcare is an important aspect of estate planning, regardless of your age. It is easy to assume that your spouse or other family members understand what your healthcare wishes are, but the only way to guarantee it is by working with an estate planning attorney.

In Good Hands

Working with a probate lawyer, you can ensure that your loved one’s will is being fairly interpreted. Sometimes, the best plan can be twisted to benefit the wrong people. Don’t let your loved one be taken advantage of. We can work with you to ensure the proper distribution of assets.

Free Consultations

Call 440-530-9166 to schedule your free consultation with the office of Hallett Legal Group, LLC. This is the first step you can take to ensure that nothing is left up to interpretation regarding your health, end-of-life care, or the distribution of your wealth. Don’t wait for the perfect time to start planning. That time is now!

Plan For A Future

Avoid Surprises

In Good Hands

Effortlessly Modified

Healthcare Wishes

Free Consultations

What is a Power of Attorney?

While you are living, you can assign someone to act on your behalf, giving them the power to make legal, financial, and medical decisions. This person has power of attorney regarding important decisions and is called your “agent.”

Your agent will be identified in your estate plan, along with the powers you are giving them. You can assign different people as agents with the ability to make different decisions. For example, you can give your wife your agent with the power to make medical decisions on your behalf but assign your business partner or an attorney as an agent who can make important financial decisions for you.

You can determine the reach of your agent’s power as well as how long their power lasts. You can determine if they maintain that power only while you are unable to make those important decisions or even after you recover and are of sound mind.

Our Latest Blog Posts

March 5, 2025

What Are the Legal Consequences of Dying Without a Will?
Read More: What Are the Legal Consequences of Dying Without a Will?

Helping You Avoid Having the Government As Your Estate Planner Intestate laws in Ohio determine how assets are to be
February 3, 2025

How Trusts Simplify Estate Planning for Young Families
Read More: How Trusts Simplify Estate Planning for Young Families

Protecting Your Loved Ones With A Smart Estate Plan Trusts serve as versatile legal tools that can bring substantial peace
January 1, 2025

Differences Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Estate Planning
Read More: Differences Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Estate Planning

Which Type of Trust is the Best Strategy For Your Estate Plan? Revocable trusts and irrevocable trusts each offer strategic

March 5, 2025

What Are the Legal Consequences of Dying Without a Will?

Helping You Avoid Having the Government As Your Estate Planner Intestate laws in Ohio determine…

February 3, 2025

How Trusts Simplify Estate Planning for Young Families

Protecting Your Loved Ones With A Smart Estate Plan Trusts serve as versatile legal tools…

January 1, 2025

Differences Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Estate Planning

Which Type of Trust is the Best Strategy For Your Estate Plan? Revocable trusts and…

VIEW ALL POSTS

Is Estate Planning Necessary?

There are many reasons a person may think that planning out the handling of their estate isn’t necessary. The reality is that everyone, regardless of their age or health, should plan for the day they are unable to make decisions regarding their health and estate.

Young, healthy people may believe they don’t need to plan because they aren’t financially secure or old enough. Younger people, especially those with children, need a will to determine who should care for their children in the event that both parents pass away.

People with a smaller estate may feel that they don’t need to plan for what happens after they pass away. But what happens if their family fights over what assets are left behind after they pass and there isn’t a will to outline their wishes?

Estate planning isn’t reserved for the wealthy, seniors, or the sick. It is a valuable method of ensuring your desires are honored after death.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is estate planning for?

Estate planning is for anyone who wants to ensure their wealth and health are managed in accordance with their wishes in the event that they are incapacitated or pass away and are no longer able to make such decisions themselves.

This process is not reserved for only the wealthy, disabled, or elderly. Anyone who has assets in their name that they would like to go to; specifically people, should have a will. The same is true for people with children, who need to determine who would be the guardian of minor children should the unthinkable happen.

What is an executor?

An executor, also known as a personal representative, is the person who is in charge of the administration of your estate once you are deceased. While you can also name your executor as an heir, they aren’t necessarily on the receiving end of your will.

Instead, they will take on the responsibility of carrying out your wishes. They are in charge of the distribution of your assets as well as taking care of the debts and taxes you owe on your estate. They will obtain your death certificate and supply it to the necessary people.

Who should be your power of attorney?

Your power of attorney will act as your agent, making important financial and medical decisions for you should you become incapacitated or pass away. This person should be someone you deeply trust who knows you well. They will be able to make decisions regarding your health and wealth, after all.

Your power of attorney should understand the task they are undertaking, including the power they have to make decisions on your behalf. You can limit the power of your power of attorney and specify when they do and don’t have these decision-making powers.

People are often comfortable naming their spouse or a trusted child their power of attorney, but your agent does not have to be related to you.

What is a healthcare power of attorney?

A healthcare power of attorney is a legal document you use to designate someone to make choices about your care should you become incapacitated. Working with an estate planning lawyer, you can draft your healthcare power of attorney. You are able to instruct that your healthcare power of attorney is to take effect when a doctor has determined you do not have the mental capacity to make important decisions.

You can assign a different person as your medical power of attorney than your financial power of attorney. This allows you to have greater control over how your health and finances are managed.

What is probate court?

Probate court is a specialized court that handles the distribution of a person’s estate after their death. It also handles guardianships for minor children and incapacitated adults. The probate court will oversee the appointment of executors, ensure the validity of the will, and ensure guardianship is honored according to the will. If there is no will, they will do their best to choose a related guardian who is in the best position to care for minor children.

Lastly, the court will ensure that all proper debts are paid from the estate and that the remainder of the assets are distributed according to the decedent’s will, if there is one.

What happens when someone dies without a will?

When a person dies without a will, they die intestate. This means there is no legal document that determines how your estate and assets will be divided. This means that the division of your estate and assets will rely on state law and not your wishes.

If you pass away with assets in your name and those assets do not have a beneficiary, with or without a will, your estate will go through probate. The main difference is that a probate court would use your will to divvy up your estate, but without a will, they would instead follow the line of succession. An example of this not being ideal would be if you are separated from your spouse but not divorced. They would be first in the line of succession regarding your estate.

How are assets distributed to minor children?

If you are planning your estate and you have minor children, you will likely create a trust with your children as a beneficiary and a responsible adult as the trustee.

A trust allows you to put assets into it and to delegate how those assets should be distributed, and to whom they should be distributed.

This allows you to make sure your children are taken care of should both parents pass away or become incapacitated. This peace of mind can help you rest easy knowing your children will be cared for even if the unthinkable happens.

Do you need an estate planning lawyer?

There are many avenues available for people who want to create a will or trust and plan how their estate will be handled after they pass. Online resources allow you to create a will without even leaving your living room. Unfortunately, online resources often fail to take into consideration your unique situation and work through each of your assets to make sure they are handled in the way you desire.

But, an experienced estate planning lawyer will be able to answer your questions directly. They have the experience to create an iron-clad plan that will make sure your healthcare is handled and your assets are distributed the way you intended. They will be able to help your family if they have any questions regarding your estate. Even if you use an online resource, it is always best to run it by an estate planning lawyer who can tell you if it will hold up according to probate law.

Avon Estate Planning Attorneys

Planning the Future For Your Loved Ones After You Are Gone

How May We Help You?

What is Estate Planning?

Clients Success Stories

What is an Advance Directive?

Meet The Attorneys

What is a Trust?

Why Choose Us?

What is a Power of Attorney?

Our Latest Blog Posts

What Are the Legal Consequences of Dying Without a Will?

How Trusts Simplify Estate Planning for Young Families

Differences Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Estate Planning

What Are the Legal Consequences of Dying Without a Will?

How Trusts Simplify Estate Planning for Young Families

Differences Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Estate Planning

Is Estate Planning Necessary?

Frequently Asked Questions

To Schedule A FreeConsultation

To Schedule A Free
Consultation