The exact list of what documents you may need for your estate plan will vary with your specific details, however, generally speaking, most clients need some form of the following:

1. A Last Will & Testament. Simply put, everyone needs a Last Will & Testament. A Will directs where your assets are to go upon your death and who the beneficiaries of those assets are. It is sometimes possible to avoid Probate via a Trust or simply by having beneficiaries on every all financial accounts - however - a Will is still recommended as a back-up, just in case an asset was overlooked or forgotten about in planning. Even in situations where a Trust is created to distribute all your assets, we will still prepare what is usually referred to as a "pour-over will". A pour-over will acts as a catchall and takes care of any assets that were left out of the trust, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

2. A Power of Attorney. A Will only distributes assets upon death and does nothing to give authority to a beneficiary while a client is still living. A power of attorney is needed to allow someone - a spouse or child for example - to have access and authority to act on someones behalf while they are still living. This is recommended especially in situations where age or bad/failing health is an issue. Unforeseen situations often arise such as family needing access to a bank account to pay the mortgage but if a client becomes incapacitated, that can became a large problem. For this reason, most estate plans consist of some form of a power or attorney.