• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Wilcox Attorneys, PA

Wilcox Attorneys, PA an Arkansas Estate Planning & Trust Information Center

Northwest Arkansas Estate Planning Attorneys (479) 443-0062

Client Vault
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • Our Firm
    • About the American Academy
    • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • News & Events
    • Speaker Connection
  • services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Incapacity Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • Secure Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Webinars
  • Practice Areas
  • Resources
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Estate Planning Resources
      • Estate Planning Articles
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Estate Planning
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Incapacity Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration & Probate
    • Newsletters
    • Pre Consultation Form
    • Trust Administration & Probate Resources
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • Contact Us
  • Blog

Estate Planning Advice for Grandparents

July 25, 2018 by Audra Bailey Wilcox Leave a Comment

This is an article from Zimmer Law Firm (https://zimmerlawfirm.com/) in Cincinnati, Ohio, that we thought others may find helpful.

Estate planning lawyers provide their clients advice with the creation of an estate plan that is tailored to your family’s situation. We help people of all ages and we understand how your life circumstances change as you get older. While it is essential for young people to have an estate plan in place, estate planning is something that most people think becomes more important as you get older. As you begin to age, the likelihood you will experience an incapacitating injury or the pass away increase, so if you don’t already have an estate plan in place, it becomes vital to create one.

Estate Planning Firms help seniors make a plan that addresses end-of-life issues and helps protect a legacy. This can be especially important for grandparents who want to provide a gift for their grandchildren or who want to pass a family business on to the next generation.

Estate Planning Advice for Grandparents

For many grandparents, decisions need to be made about how an inheritance will be provided to children and grandchildren. You’ll need to assess how you want to divide the assets you plan to leave for your loved ones and make sure that you use the proper tools to transfer those assets in the most efficient way possible.

If you have decided to leave money to your grandchildren, you may want more control over the inheritance than you would have if you simply stated your wishes in a will.

You may want to name a guardian for the funds until your grandchildren are old enough to manage the money and property on their own. It’s important for someone to be put in charge of managing the money if your grandchildren are underage. Children under 18 cannot inherit directly and the court may have to appoint a guardian for their inheritance if it is left to them in a will. You may also want to have a say in how the money is used. Making sure the inheritance is spent on your grandchild’s education and specifying that no money can be transferred to your grandchild until he or she reaches aged 21 are both common requirements.

Tools like a trust allow you to take additional control. You can create a trust document that puts a responsible person in charge of managing your grandchild’s inheritance and that establishes conditions or limitations on the transfer of trust assets.

If you are leaving money to grandchildren and you have a larger estate, you also need to determine if estate taxes will be an issue. If your estate owes taxes, this could significantly reduce the amount of money that your grandchildren receive in their inheritance. There are ways to reduce or avoid estate tax, but you need to talk with an experienced attorney early in the estate planning process to determine the best way to facilitate the tax-free transfer of wealth.

You cannot just use a living trust and assume that because the assets in the trust transfer outside of probate, estate tax won’t be assessed. Taxes can be due on both money transferred through a will as well as money transferred by the trust administration process.

Getting Help from Estate Planning Lawyers

Estate planning lawyers will work closely with you to make an appropriate estate plan for your family and life situation. Whether you are a grandparent or a newlywed, if you want to protect your loved ones and secure your autonomy in case of a serious medical event, your estate planning attorney can help you.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Audra Bailey Wilcox
Audra Bailey Wilcox
Attorney at Wilcox Attorneys, PA
Audra Bailey Wilcox began practicing law in 1998 after receiving her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science and her Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas.Audra owned a local title insurance company and at the same time practiced law under the name “A. Bailey Attorney, PA” with offices in Fayetteville, Farmington, and Prairie Grove.In 2018, Audra transitioned her law firm and became known as Wilcox Attorneys, PA.She is very proud of the SBA family and the care and concern her staff has for the clients of the firm. The firm’s areas of practice include real estate transactions, commercial and business law, long term care Medicaid planning, business/farm succession planning, probate, wills, trusts and estate planning.
Audra Bailey Wilcox
Latest posts by Audra Bailey Wilcox (see all)
  • Understanding Undue Influence – Part II - August 19, 2022
  • Understanding Undue Influence – Part I - August 17, 2022
  • Death and Your Digital Footprint - August 15, 2022

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Wilcox Attorneys, PA

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING WORKSHEET

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

Subscribe to Our Blog

Subscribe to our blog for all the latest estate planning news and updates!

Office Address

Fayetteville
2766 Millennium Drive
Fayetteville, AR 72703
Phone: (479) 443-0062

Office Address

Prairie Grove
1100 Division Street, Suite 4
Prairie Grove, AR 72753
Phone: (479) 846-6026

( By Appointment Only )

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Map

map for office
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

footer-logo

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.