Sometimes money has a habit of bringing out the worst in people, even in the best of families.  One of the most important reasons to get your Minnesota estate plan handled is to keep your family out of conflict.  However, without the right counsel, your estate plan could actually cause conflict!

Here’s what to do to make sure that doesn’t happen with your family:

Get Help Communicating Your Plans.  At times, parents share their estate planning choices with their adult children and the reaction is not what they expect. It can be a delicate conversation, and it can be helpful to have someone facilitating the discussion. This can be a difficult conversation for you to have on your own and it is one we are extremely skilled at handling.  In our office, we recommend inviting adult children into the planning process and letting them know ahead of time why you have made the decisions you have made.  We don’t recommend doing it without the guidance of trusted counsel.

Do Not Put One Sibling In Charge of Another Sibling’s Inheritance.  Unless there are very compelling circumstances or it is agreed to ahead of time by both siblings, putting one sibling in charge of another will almost always lead to anger and resentment.  You can circumvent this with good communication and agreement ahead of time. Or, better yet, you can appoint someone else to care for your child’s inheritance. We can help you think that through, so call us if a child in your family will need inheritance protection.

Transfer Some Now Instead of All Later.  Consider how you can begin to transfer assets to your children during your lifetime, when you can influence how they use those assets. At the same time, you can pass on your values right along with them, instead of waiting until you are gone to pass on everything you’ve worked so hard for.

Make Changes When Necessary.  Estate planning is a dynamic process, and when changes occur in your life – like the divorce of a child or the birth of a new grandchild – your plan needs to change as well.

Pass On More Than Just Your Money.  Most estate plans focus only on your stuff, but your most valuable assets are your values, insights, stories and experience. We have a unique process for helping you to pass on these assets, which most often are lost when someone dies. They are what will keep your family focused on what really matters after you are gone.

Choose the right advisor.  Developing a strong working relationship with a Personal Family Lawyer® that will give you the freedom to candidly discuss your family dynamics, plan accordingly and keep the family involved every step of the way.

If you would like to create or update your estate plan, call our office at (612) 206-3701 or fill out our contact form today to schedule a time for us to sit down and talk.

Image courtesy of Michal Marcol / FreeDigitalPhotos.net