Keating Law Blog

Although you aren’t required by law to hire an attorney to assist you with the estate planning process, you should strongly consider doing so. The reason for this is simple: attempting to navigate the estate planning process by yourself can do more harm than good. In fact, a single misstep during the process can have major negative consequences for you and your loved ones.
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Most people are familiar with at least some of the benefits of estate planning. For example, with an estate plan, you can determine who will inherit your assets after you pass away and help your loved ones avoid the probate process. Lesser known, however, is the ability of an estate plan to address incapacity.
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One of the biggest misconceptions about estate planning is that it is only for the rich. Nothing could be further from the truth. Estate planning offers multiple advantages, even to people who have few assets. In other words, estate planning is for everyone. In this article, we examine four reasons that estate planning isn’t just for the rich.
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Estate planning is an effective way to pass along one’s assets with minimal court involvement. One particularly effective estate planning tool is the living trust. Whether you should include a living trust in your estate plan depends on your unique circumstances and needs. However, regardless of whether you ultimately decide to include one in your estate plan, understanding the pros and cons of a living trust can help you make an informed decision. In this article, we examine the pros and cons of living trusts.
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Many people believe that estate planning is only for the rich. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Without an estate plan in place, settling your affairs after you are gone could have a costly impact on your loved ones—regardless of your income or assets. In this article, we discuss four reasons that you need an estate plan.

Estate Planning Protects Beneficiaries

An estate plan can protect beneficiaries in a number of ways, including making arrangements for what will happen if something happens to you.
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Probate is a legal process that is sometimes required after a person dies. During probate, the assets of a deceased person—called a decedent—are distributed to his or her heirs or beneficiaries. In addition, if a decedent has outstanding debts, the probate court will sell his or her assets to pay creditors what they are owed. In this article, we discuss the probate process in Michigan.

When is Probate Required?

In Michigan, probate is necessary when a person dies while owning property or assets that are listed under his or her name alone.
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Probate is the process by which a court facilitates the distribution of a deceased person’s assets. Unfortunately, however, the probate process is often long, expensive, and confusing. Therefore, one of the primary goals of estate planning for most people is the avoidance of probate. In this article, we discuss some of the ways to avoid probate in Michigan.

Living Trusts

A living trust is a legal document that places your assets in trust for your benefit during your lifetime, and it details where you'd like these assets to go upon your death.

Everyone needs an estate plan. However, not just any estate plan will do. In fact, it may be better to have no estate plan at all than an estate plan that is riddled with mistakes. Therefore, before beginning the estate planning process, you should contact an Read more . . .

A lot of people mistakenly believe that estate planning is only for the wealthy. This couldn’t be further from the truth. If you have any assets at all, you need an estate plan. In addition, with a Michigan estate planning attorney on your side, the estate planning process doesn’t need to be complicated or stressful. In this article, we examine six of the most common estate planning documents.
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You may have heard that one of the key advantages to estate planning is the avoidance of probate. But what’s the point of avoiding probate? In a nutshell, probate can be a long, expensive process. With an estate plan in place, however, it’s often possible to avoid the probate process entirely. In this article, we examine some common reasons to avoid probate.

A Probate Judge Can Make Things Difficult

Court approval is required during each step of the probate process.
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Everyone needs an estate plan, especially people without children. However, due to their unique needs, people who don’t have kids must approach the estate planning process differently than those who do. In this article, we provide some estate planning tips for people without children.

Draft a Will

If you don’t have children, you definitely need a will. The reason for this is that, without children, you don’t have natural heirs to inherit your wealth.
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