Estate Planning

Helping Wisconsin Clients With Their Estate Plans

Do you know what will happen to your assets when you pass away? Through proper estate planning, you can make sure that your property and investments will pass to your loved ones who will be provided for in the future. At the Milwaukee law office of Schneiderman & Schneiderman, LLC, I will analyze your situation, recommend and draft the documents you need to effectively plan for the future.

Accomplishing Your Estate Planning Goals

Every adult should have at least a basic estate plan. Depending on your financial situation, various documents may be helpful to ensure that your assets are distributed according to your wishes. Estate planning is also a useful tool to avoid the expense of probate and unnecessary estate taxes. I will analyze your situation and draft the documents you need, such as:

• Wills: The most basic element for transfer of assets on death is a will. In a will, you may designate who you want as Personal Administrator, an individual or corporate fiduciary who will administer your estate, and carry out the provisions of your will. You may also designate Guardians for minors and incapacitated heirs. If you need a testamentary trust, you can have trust provisions in your will which become effective when your will is probated, after your death.

Planning Non-probate Transfers

• Marital Property Agreements: Wisconsin is a marital property state. Husbands and wives may, by properly drafted written agreements, direct which property is to be deemed "marital property" in which each spouse will have a one-half interest; or "non-marital property" in which property is owned by one spouse or the other. A direction in a marital property agreement may provide for the transfer of marital property to a surviving spouse, on the death of the other spouse. Such a transfer on death, pursuant to a marital property agreement, can substantially reduce probate costs, by a non-probate transfer. The declaration of marital property may reduce estate taxes because only the deceased spouse's one-half interest will be deemed in that spouse's estate for tax purposes. The surviving spouse's marital property will be subject to estate taxes on his or her subsequent death, but the total estate taxes will be less than if the entire estate of the marital couple was to be taxed in the estate of one of the spouses.
  
• Trusts: Trusts, whether created during your lifetime (called "inter vivos trusts"), or created under a will (called "testamentary trusts") are used to transfer assets on death, and to avoid or minimize estate taxes.
  
• Living Trust (Inter vivos trusts):  can be used as a probate avoidance tool. Living trusts can be used for the support, care and maintenance of the maker (called a "settlor") and the maker's family. The trust can be used to marshal the maker's asset on death for the payment of debts, funeral and last illness expense. Trusts may be designated as a beneficiary on life insurance policies, and a transfer on death beneficiary for stocks, bonds and other securities, bank accounts and real estate held in the name of the maker of the Trust. Living trusts are used to make gifts to minors, and to transfer assets to family members to reduce estate taxes, and for many other purposes.

Other Estate Planning Tools

• Living Will: Also called a declaration to physicians, your living will allows you to specify the type of health care you want if you are in an end stage condition; in a persistent vegetative state; or you have a terminal condition. You may direct that life-prolonging procedures be withheld or withdrawn when the application of such procedures would serve only to artificially prolong the process of dying. You may reqest that you be permitted to die naturally with only the administration of medication or the performance of any medical procedure deemed necessary to provide comfort care or alleviate pain.
  
• Powers of Attorney for Health Care: In this document, you may designate a health care agent (a proxy) and an alternate to make health care decisions for you. Designated health care agents may get medical information and health care records from doctors, hospitals and other providers. Your choice of treatment under differing conditions may be selected in the document. This document comes into play only when you are unable to understand or unable to communicate your wishes.
  
• Durable Powers of Attorney (financial power of attorney): These documents allow you as the principal to designate a representative, called a lawyer in fact, to act you, the principal, whenever required by your absence or inability to act for yourself. It allows the attorney in fact to represent your interests in legal matters, effect banking, real estate and security transactions in your name, make gifts to your loved ones, exercise a disclaimer to inherit under a will, trust, or as an heir at law. Durable powers of attorney may also be used to give the attorney in fact the right to fund a trust in which you have an interest. Durable powers of attorney become ineffective upon your death, when a personal representative must be appointed. However, a durable power of attorney is not effected if you become incompetent.

The right combination of these documents can prepare your estate to reduce gift and estate taxes as well as prevent unnecessary stress for your loved ones. If you do not have a current estate plan call 414-352-5666 or contact me online to schedule a free initial consultation.

Schneiderman & Schneiderman, LLC

8989 North Port Washington Road
Suite 201
Milwaukee, WI 53217
Map & Directions

At Schneiderman & Schneiderman, LLC, I represent clients throughout the Milwaukee area, including those in Brown Deer, Fox Point, Milwaukee, Mequon, River Hills, Shorewood, Brookfield, Wauwatosa, Menomonee Falls, New Berlin, Glendale, Bayside, Milwaukee County, Waukesha County, Ozaukee County, Washington County, Racine County, Kenosha County and Walworth County.