Get Your Estate Plan in Gear

Estate planning laws have undergone swift changes over the past several years and may change again in the years ahead. If you're creating or updating an estate plan, it's essential that you seek the advice of an attorney who's well versed in this area. Before you hire an estate-planning attorney to draft or update your estate plan, it's important to understand your role in the estate-planning process.

Find a qualified attorney: Because your estate plan will likely need to be updated as the years go by and your personal circumstances change, it makes sense to find an attorney who practices in the community where you live. This can help you meet with him/her on an ongoing basis.

Take stock of your assets: Before you meet with your attorney, spend some time enumerating your assets and their value: your investment accounts, life insurance, personal assets such as your home, and your share of any businesses that you own. Also gather current information about any debts outstanding. Your estate-planning attorney is likely to provide you with a worksheet to document your assets and liabilities, but it's helpful to collect this information in advance.

Identify key individuals: Another important aspect of estate planning is identifying the individuals you trust to ensure that your wishes are carried out once you're gone.

Executor: A person who gathers all of your assets and makes sure that they are distributed as spelled out in your will.

Durable (Financial) Power of Attorney: A person you entrust with making financial decisions on your behalf if you should become disabled and unable to manage your own financial affairs.

Power of Attorney for Health Care: A person you entrust with making health-care decisions on your behalf if you are disabled and unable to make them on your own.

Guardian: A person who would look after your children if you and your spouse were to die when your children are minors.

Know the key documents you need: When you meet with your estate-planning attorney, he or she will make recommendations about your estate plan. At a minimum, you should ask your attorney to draft the following documents.

Last Will and Testament: A legal document that tells everyone, including your heirs, how you would like your assets distributed after you're gone.

Living Will: A document that tells your loved ones and your health-care providers how you would like to be cared for if you should become terminally ill; usually includes details about your views toward life-support equipment.

Durable (Financial) Power of Attorney: A document that gives an individual the power to make financial decisions and execute financial transactions on your behalf if you are unable to do so.

Medical Power of Attorney: A document that gives an individual the power to make health-care decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so.

Manage your documents: Once your estate-planning documents are drafted, destroy any older versions of them. Notify your executor of the whereabouts of your estate-planning documents, and provide copies of the relevant documents to your executor, powers of attorney, and the guardian for your children.

Plan to keep your plan current: Last but not least, plan to keep your estate plan current. One of the biggest estate-planning pitfalls is drafting an estate plan but not keeping it up to date. Changes may include change in marital status, assets, financial status, death or ill health of your beneficiaries, executor, power of attorneys, or guardian.