Estate Planning Case Study: Safeguarding Family Assets and Legacy for Sam and Anne
Client BackgroundSam, aged 66, and Anne, aged 59, are a retired couple with three adult children, all citizens of the United States. Their primary asset is their family home, with $379,000 in equity, which they jointly own. They also have $10,000 in savings. Anne possesses two retirement accounts with balances of $45,000 and $19,000, while Sam has a life insurance policy valued at $25,000. Sam has faced health challenges, having experienced a heart attack two years ago. Currently, he is receiving Social Security benefits and a union pension.
The couple's estate planning objectives include protecting their family home in case either of them requires nursing home care. They aim to distribute their assets among their three adult children, with a specific bequest of their weapons collection to one adult child and their grandsons. Sam and Anne seek to designate backup choices for health care proxies (HCP) and powers of attorney (PoA)/trustee roles. While their assets may not meet the estate tax threshold, their concerns revolve around preserving their home in the event of assisted living needs and ensuring the responsible recipient of their weapons collection. |
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Estate Planning Solutions
- Asset Protection for Home: Recognizing the importance of preserving their family home in the face of potential nursing home care costs, Sam and Anne embarked on a comprehensive estate planning journey. This included measures to safeguard their home and other assets.
- Equal Distribution Among Children: Sam and Anne's estate plan prioritizes equal distribution of their assets among their three adult children, ensuring a fair and balanced distribution of their legacy.
- Specific Bequest for Weapons Collection: To address their unique wishes regarding the weapons collection, Sam and Anne incorporated specific provisions in their estate plan, designating the intended recipient and ensuring responsible use.
- Backup Choices for Key Roles: Identifying the significance of reliable backup choices, the couple designated their son as a backup for health care proxy decisions and their daughter for powers of attorney and trustee roles, providing a robust framework for decision-making continuity.
Conclusion
Sam and Anne's comprehensive estate plan successfully addressed their concerns about protecting their family home and ensuring the responsible transfer of their weapons collection. By specifying backup choices for key roles, they established a robust framework for decision-making continuity in case of incapacity.
This case study emphasizes the importance of strategic estate planning to safeguard assets, preserve family legacies, and provide peace of mind during retirement years. Sam and Anne's story highlights the value of tailoring estate plans to individual needs, even when estate tax thresholds are not a concern.
This case study emphasizes the importance of strategic estate planning to safeguard assets, preserve family legacies, and provide peace of mind during retirement years. Sam and Anne's story highlights the value of tailoring estate plans to individual needs, even when estate tax thresholds are not a concern.
Meet Our Estate Planning Lawyers
Emily Smith-Lee is the owner and founder of slnlaw. She is a 1996 graduate of Boston College Law School. She was previously a partner at the Boston office of a large international firm, where she worked for thirteen years before starting the firm that became slnlaw in 2009. She has been recognized as Massachusetts Superlawyer each year since 2013, and in 2018 earned recognition as one of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly's Lawyers of the Year.
Jenna Ordway: Jenna is a 2013 graduate of Quinnipiac Law School, and also earned an LLM in Taxation from Boston University in 2015. She has been affiliated with slnlaw since 2011, first as a law clerk and then as an attorney. Jenna has been recognized since 2019 as a "Rising Star" by Massachusetts Superlawyers. Jenna wrote a book on estate planning: The Road to Peace of Mind: What You Need to Know About Estate Planning. Jenna has helped many individuals and families with planning to protect their legacies and loved ones, and planning for the future and succession of their businesses.
Sharleen Tinnin: Sharleen is a 2010 graduate of Northeastern University School of Law, and earned her LLM in estate planning from Western New England Scool of Law in 2016. She has been with slnlaw since 2023. Prior to joining slnlaw, she worked with King, Tilden, McEttrick & Brink, P.C. on complex civil litigation matters. She previously worked for the United States Department of Justice, and received an "Excellence in Justice" award in 2017. Sharleen has helped many clients with planning for their legacies and their future, and navigating the probate process in Massachusetts after the death of a loved one.
How We Can Help
Our expertise lies in crafting personalized estate plans, like Sam and Anne's, to protect your assets, preserve your legacy, and ensure peace of mind. You can use the button below to schedule a call back from a member of our team, or give us a call at 781-784-2322.
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