Here are the six steps to complete a “typical” estate plan and the average time required of you:

STEP ONE: CONTACT US AND THEN COMPLETE QUESTIONNAIRE
(your time: 30-60 minutes)

Feel free to contact us with your initial questions and to learn about our practice. Once you feel comfortable to begin, you will then complete a questionnaire which we will email or send to you. This should take you 30-60 minutes. The questionnaire provides us with a picture of your family history, assets, liabilities, ages, and other key “triggers” that help us create the best possible estate plan for you.

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STEP TWO: WE MEET
(your time: 1-6 hours)

If you are trying to get your estate plan done in time for a trip to another country, (big trips requiring long flights often motivate estate planning) then we find this meeting goes quite quickly! If your planning has certain issues that make it more complex, if you and your spouse are not united on certain issues, or you simply wish to take time to understand your options, this meeting will last longer and will turn into a second or multiple meetings. Most important is that you have the information you need to make the best planning decisions for your specific circumstances.

STEP THREE: WE DRAFT
(your time: none)

We draft your estate plan documents based on your goals, objectives, and unique circumstances determined from our initial meeting(s) and your responses to our questionnaire.

STEP FOUR: YOU REVIEW
(your time: 1 hour)

You review all documents to ensure they reflect our discussions of your goals and objectives. We will communicate back and forth by phone or email about any changes that may be needed.

STEP FIVE: YOU SIGN YOUR DOCUMENTS
(your time: 45 minutes)

We meet at our office where documents will be signed, witnessed, and notarized. We will make copies for our records. You keep the originals.

STEP SIX: IF NECESSARY, CHANGES MADE TO YOUR DEED, LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES AND VARIOUS FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS; REGISTRY FILINGS COMPLETED
(your time: 0-3 hours)

This is the last vital step, to make sure that all your assets are named, assigned, and deeded to ensure that all your assets “fit” and work with your newly developed estate plan goals and objectives. This requires requesting and completing forms and communicating with your financial and insurance institutions. You can do this yourself, we can do it, or we can help you do it.

SUMMARY

Total time required by you: 3-13 hours
(Simple estates will be less, more complicated estates will be longer.)

Amount of time to complete your estate plan: usually within 2 - 4 weeks.

(If you need a “rush” job, ask. We will do our best to get it done.)

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