This week is Thanksgiving. So what are you thankful for? Family is at the top of most of our lists, and we will be spending time with family, enjoying each other’s company and plenty of delicious food! No gifts are exchanged – just stories (both old favorites and new ones) and laughs, and maybe some recipes. This time should be treasured, as family members often do not live near each other, and, therefore, don’t have many opportunities to be together.
It is very sad when families are torn apart because of hard feelings resulting from the way Mom or Dad left things in their Wills or Living Trusts. Maybe they left their assets in unequal shares among their children. Or maybe they completely disinherited one or more children or grandchildren. Maybe they chose one child over another to be their health care decision-maker or financial power of attorney. Or perhaps Mom and Dad did not prepare any estate planning documents, and their children are left to decide on who should be in charge and how certain assets are to be divided among them.
Any of these scenarios can lead to hurt feelings, at minimum, or to family arguments and hostility, or even lengthy and costly legal battles, at the extreme.
If you are thinking about creating an estate plan, or if you already have one in place, consider discussing your decisions with your family. More importantly, discuss your reasons for your decisions with them. Having an open discussion with the people who will be affected by your plan can go a long way in keeping family harmony long after you are gone. If you just do not feel comfortable discussing your plan with your family, perhaps you could write a letter to your family explaining your wishes and motivations for the decisions you have made.
You certainly have no obligation to justify your decisions to your family. However, if you can try to make them understand why you did what you did, there is a better chance that they will not resent you or their siblings or cousins after you are gone. If they do not resent each other, they will likely be able to enjoy many happy Thanksgivings with each other for many years to come. And that is a legacy worth more than any amount of money you could leave to them.
If you would like to discuss your existing estate plan, or start the process of creating one, please call our office at (847) 253-8800 or contact us online to schedule a no-charge initial consultation with one of our experienced estate planning attorneys. We will walk you through different options, depending on your needs, and help you think about how best to preserve family harmony, no matter what your plan looks like.
Have a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving!
Waltz, Palmer & Dawson, LLC is a full-service law firm with various areas of service to assist your business, including: Employment Law, Intellectual Property, Commercial Real Estate, Business Immigration, Litigation and general Business Law services. Individual services include Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts, Probate, Guardianship, Divorce and Family Law, Collaborative Divorce & Mediation.
This article constitutes attorney advertising. The material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.