Practice Areas

Wills and Trusts

Wills and trusts are important estate planning tools that can help you protect the people you care about and make your wishes clear. Although no two estate plans are exactly alike, taking the time to put an appropriate plan in place can provide valuable peace of mind for you and greater clarity for your family in the future.

A will allows you to state how property that is part of your probate estate should be distributed after your death. It also allows you to nominate the person you would like to serve as your personal representative—the individual responsible for administering your estate and carrying out the instructions in your will. If you have minor children, your will can also be used to nominate the person you would want to serve as their guardian if neither parent were able to care for them.

Without a valid will, property that passes through your probate estate will generally be distributed according to Michigan’s intestacy laws. Those laws provide a default plan, but they may not reflect your relationships, priorities, or wishes. Preparing a will allows you to make those decisions for yourself.

It is also important to understand that a will does not, by itself, avoid probate. Assets that are subject to probate generally must still pass through the probate process even when there is a valid will. Probate is not necessarily something to fear, but it can take time, involve court and administrative expenses, and make certain information part of the public court record.

A trust may provide another way to manage and transfer assets. For many individuals and families, a revocable living trust can be a useful estate planning tool. When a trust is properly created and funded, assets held in the trust can generally be managed according to its terms during your lifetime and distributed after your death without going through probate.

A revocable living trust can also provide continuity if you become unable to manage trust assets yourself and can give you greater flexibility in deciding how and when beneficiaries receive an inheritance. For example, a trust may be useful when you want assets to be managed for younger beneficiaries or when you would prefer that an inheritance be distributed over time rather than all at once.

A trust is not automatically better than a will, and not everyone needs one. The right approach depends upon your family, your assets, your goals, and what you would like your estate plan to accomplish.

At Sherman Estate Planning, we take the time to understand your circumstances and explain your options in clear, straightforward language. Our goal is not to recommend more planning than you need. It is to help you create an estate plan that makes sense for you and the people who matter most to you.

Durable Financial Power of Attorney

A Durable Financial Power of Attorney is an important part of planning for your lifetime as well as for the future. It allows you to choose someone you trust to handle financial and property-related matters on your behalf within the authority you give that person.

Most of us naturally expect to continue managing our own finances. But an unexpected illness, injury, hospitalization, or other circumstance can sometimes make it difficult or impossible to handle financial matters personally.

A durable financial power of attorney allows you to make an important decision in advance: Who would I trust to help manage my affairs if I were unable to do so myself?

Depending upon how the document is prepared and the authority you choose to grant, your agent may be able to assist with matters such as paying bills, managing bank accounts, handling real estate, dealing with insurance, addressing tax matters, communicating with financial institutions, and taking care of other financial responsibilities.

Without appropriate advance planning, family members may sometimes need to seek authority through probate court before they can manage the financial affairs of a person who has become incapacitated. Having a properly prepared durable financial power of attorney in place can make it easier for someone you trust to step in when help is needed.

Many people prepare a power of attorney hoping that it will never have to be used. That is perfectly understandable. Its value lies in knowing that a plan is already in place should the need ever arise.

Patient Advocate Designation

A thoughtful estate plan should address more than what happens to property after death. It should also address one of the most personal questions any of us can face:

If I could not make my own healthcare decisions, whom would I want to speak for me?

In Michigan, a Patient Advocate Designation, sometimes referred to as a durable power of attorney for healthcare, allows you to choose a trusted person to serve as your patient advocate if you become unable to participate in medical decisions yourself.

Your patient advocate can communicate with physicians and other healthcare providers and make healthcare decisions for you within the authority provided by your designation. The document can also provide guidance concerning your wishes about medical treatment and other healthcare decisions that are important to you.

Choosing a patient advocate is about more than completing a legal document. It is an opportunity to think carefully about whom you trust, discuss your wishes with that person, and provide guidance that may be enormously valuable if an unexpected medical situation occurs.

Without clear advance planning, family members can be left uncertain about who should make decisions or what you would have wanted. That uncertainty can add stress during an already difficult time.

A carefully prepared Patient Advocate Designation allows you to make your wishes known and identify the person you trust to speak for you if you cannot speak for yourself.

For many people, that clarity—and the reassurance it can provide to both you and your family—is one of the most important parts of an estate plan.