Wills And Trusts

A will gives you control over what happens to your assets, your children, and your property when you die. Without one, Virginia's intestacy laws take over, and the results frequently surprise the families left behind. A common misconception about estate planning is...

Signing a will requires witnesses who can testify if there are challenges against the document after the testator dies. Almost any competent adult can act as a witness to a Virginia will signing. Frequently, people turn to uninvolved or uninterested parties to act as...

When most people think about trusts, they imagine passing wealth to family members or loved ones. But what if you want to set aside funds for a specific goal rather than a person? That is where purpose trusts come into play. A purpose trust is designed to fulfill a...

If you die without a will in Virginia, state law decides who raises your children and who receives their inheritance. Those decisions may not match your wishes. Who will care for your minor children If both parents die and no will names a guardian, a Virginia judge...

When appointing someone to serve as trustee, have you thought about what would happen if they became ill, moved away or simply could no longer handle the responsibility? What if they were no longer interested in the role and resigned after you’re gone?  Such...

Those who are putting together or updating an estate plan likely have questions about whether or not they need to include a trust. While wills serve important purposes, trusts offer powerful advantages that many people overlook: avoiding probate, protecting privacy,...

Few things feel as personal — and as easy to postpone — as deciding what happens to your assets after you are gone. But waiting can cost your family more than time and stress; it can also mean paying taxes that careful planning could have reduced or avoided. Estate...

Estate planning is important after numerous major life milestones, such as becoming a parent. Children rely entirely on their parents for care and support. If parents die, children may be at risk of foster placement unless their parents have already named a guardian...

In some cases, when someone establishes a trust, it is for a specific goal. They have an outcome they have identified, and they want to create the trust to ensure that it happens. For example, a grandparent may want to set up a trust to cover the college tuition costs...

The idea that a will might eventually expire may leave people concerned about losing control over their legacies if they do not consistently reinvest in creating new estate planning documents. People may worry about their wills becoming invalid later in life. ...