You may find experts are necessary to make informed and legal decisions.
When you start searching the Internet for advice, you can almost always get it. However, sometimes it can be a challenge, according to the Mercury News, in “Money Manners.”
A couple wrote in to ask a columnists’ advice about something their attorney suggested they do.
The attorney suggested that they convene a family meeting to discuss the terms of their estate plan. The couple was hesitant, because they knew not everyone would be happy with their plans and they did not want to deal with the fallout.
Unfortunately, the columnists then gave bad advice and suggested that the attorney only gave his advice, so he did not have to be the one to deliver the bad news to the family after the couple passed away.
The problem is that most estate planning attorneys do advise clients to talk to their families about their plans and what they should expect to receive, if not specifically, at least generally.
That advice is not given to make it easy on the attorney.
The reason for the advice is so people are made aware of the plans ahead of time and have a chance to express any discontent. Once informed, people are much less likely to pursue litigation over the estate.
When people learn the reasons behind the decisions they do not like, they have time to digest and accept them, without costing the estate a small fortune in litigation costs.
The lawyer, in this case, would stand to earn more money, if any of the family members did decide to sue.
Advice can be obtained almost anywhere today, especially with the advances of digital technology. However, it is probably best to speak to an estate planning attorney about your unique circumstances and listen to the advice.
Reference: Mercury News (July 13, 2017) “Money Manners.“
