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Estate planning is the process of getting your estate assets in order and establishing a plan to bequest those assets to particular individuals known as beneficiaries. Estate planning consists of putting together estate planning documents such as a will or a trust to carry out your objectives/intent.

One of the main reasons you want to establish an estate plan is to avoid the probate court process. The probate court process is a lengthy and costly process where the personal representative of your estate would have to administer your estate under court supervision and according to the court's timeline. This process is public and your estate planning documents become public through the probate court. Establishing a trust and funding the trust can avoid probate court, the costs involved, and the headaches that come with it. It is also important to establish an estate plan to ensure that your intent is carried out and your assets are protected and/or given to the beneficiaries you want them to go to. Also, if you do not have estate planning documents, your assets get divided according to the laws of the state that you live in. This means that state law will dictate who gets what of your assets and how much they get, through the probate court process. Overall, estate plans carry out your goals and structure the way you want your assets distributed. They also provide tax advantages, flexibility, privacy, and trust-based estate plans can be administered without probate court supervision.

An ideal estate plan should at the very least consist of the following documents: a trust; a pour-over will; a durable power of attorney for health care (also known as a patient advocate designation); and a durable power of attorney for finances. There are other ancillary documents such as a funeral representative document, assignments of business interests, a certificate of trust, and more that should also be included in your estate planning portfolio.

A Durable Power of Attorney for finances allows an agent or an attorney-in-fact to make financial decisions on your behalf, during your incapacity. Without a Durable Power of Attorney for finances, it may be necessary for one of your loved ones, including your spouse or adult child to petition a court to be appointed conservator in order to make financial decisions for you when you are incapacitated. This conservatorship process is time consuming, expensive, often costing thousands of dollars and it can be emotionally draining for your family.