By Stephanie L. Goldstein, Esq., Littman Krooks LLP

One thing we’ve learned from this pandemic is it’s never too early to plan ahead.  Those with young families may believe they are either too young to engage in estate planning, are unable to afford it or simply do not have the time.  Estate planning for young families is essential for a number of reasons.  One reason is no matter your age, no one can predict when either illness or injury could occur.  Without proper legal documents in place, emergencies will be exacerbated by a lack of appropriate legal direction.  For this reason, planning is essential for every young family.

Before the most recent quarantine orders, life for young families was fast-paced.  A new crop of online estate planning programs appears to offer a quick and easy way to prepare these vital documents. The online option may appear to be less expensive upfront, but it could cost your young family more money in the long run.  Without a proper expert to guide you throughout the process, it is almost too easy miss important considerations you may have for your family upon sudden illness or death.

These packaged DIY services may be missing legal documents to include in your plan.  Without knowledge of the appropriate questions to ask, your DIY estate plan may be missing critical information.  To that end, you run the risk of possibly creating a hardship for your family.  DIY estate planning programs may either fail to take advantage of sophisticated estate planning strategies or overlook families with children with special needs.

There is value in working with an estate planning attorney as you have the opportunity to discuss your specific situation, no matter how simple or complicated you believe it to be.  An estate planning attorney will hope for the best but plan for the worst.   Any mistakes made from a DIY estate plan will reveal themselves during the worst possible moments, which is exactly what your estate plan is meant to avoid.

Your passing is daunting to consider.  However, the team at Littman Krooks can provide you with clarity and assist in the preparation of your young family’s estate plan to ease the process.  We have all learned during this pandemic that it is vital to have virtual capabilities to conduct our personal and financial affairs.  Our team is available day, night, and weekends to help you plan.  You can meet with us via Skype, Zoom, FaceTime or any other virtual platform.  We can discuss the appropriate documents to include in your estate plan, including a will, living will, advance directives (powers of attorney, health care proxy, appointment of guardian for minor children, etc.).  You also want to consider selecting an individual to act as guardian for your young children upon your passing.  Moreover, many people have either taken a reduction in their income or been laid off by their employers.  We can go over options with you, such as an increase in life insurance coverage to ensure your family’s basic necessities and your children’s college education funds are taken care of.

We are committed to seeing all of our clients through this challenging time and we look forward to hearing from you. Contact us here.