What are the key documents in an estate plan?

• Will: A will is a legal document that lets you specify who will receive which of your assets after your death. It also allows you to name guardians for your children. Without a will, the courts decide what happens to your assets and who is responsible for your kids. In your will, if you have children under age 18, you will specify a guardian for your children. An attorney can customize your will based on your assets and family situation.

• Power of attorney: A legal document which gives a trusted person (“your agent”) the authority to manage your financial affairs if you are incapacitated. If you are in an accident or fall seriously ill, your agent may need to ask a doctor or judge to determine that you are unable to make financial decisions. A power of attorney is like a blank check. It gives the agent (the person named in the document) decision making power over financial affairs. That’s why it’s important to name a trustworthy person. Your power of attorney document should include a digital power of attorney, so that your trusted person can access your online accounts.

• Medical power of attorney: A legal document which authorizes a trusted person (“your agent”) to make difficult medical decisions on your behalf (e.g. life prolonging procedures). Your agent can only use the power of attorney if the doctor says you are unable to make key decisions for yourself.

• Health Care Directive: A statement of your wishes for the kind of life-sustaining medical intervention you want, or don’t want, in the event that you become terminally ill and unable to communicate. Health care directives are sometimes referred to as “living wills”.

• Trust: If you’re concerned about how your assets are going to be used after you die, or how much tax your heirs will have to pay, you will likely need a trust. A trust is a legal entity that lets you put conditions on how certain assets are distributed upon your death. Trusts also can help minimize gift and estate taxes. There are various trusts for various needs. For every trust, you will need to appoint a trustee, a person who will manage the trust’s assets.

For all of the above documents, we recommend that you consult an attorney to create them – do not attempt to do this on your own!

Note: Most of the above documents are boilerplate. Boilerplate is a term meaning generalized text used for contracts or clauses. Every time a lawyer creates a document, they do not write the entire thing from scratch. For example, power of attorneys and health care directives are boilerplate.