Practice Areas

Professional and caring legal service is the hallmark of the Estate Planning Section of Adams & Hayes Law.  Discussing and preparing an estate distribution plan, can be stressful and difficult.  This is particularly true for blended families with children from previous marriages, and for families with loved ones who have disabilities.

A persons declaration of how to distribute their property after his or her death.

Living Trusts:

A Trust is a right (contract) of property (real and/or personal) held by one party for the benefit of another. Trusts are now commonly used to transfer property on death which may avoid the cost and time of a probate proceeding.

Trust Administration:

Trust Administration is the task of carrying out the distribution instructions of a Trust upon the death of a Trust maker. These tasks are usually performed by a successor Trustee who, as a fiduciary, distributes the assets in accordance with Trust instructions and performs other administrative duties.

Retirement Benefits Gifting:

Resulting from the Pension Protection Act of 2006 new alternatives are available to holders of IRAs, 401Ks and other retirement benefits. Individuals with substantial assets in these instruments can use the law to direct distribution of these asset balances upon death. 

Legacy Planning:

Also known as Charitable Giving, Legacy Planning provides the opportunity to individuals to gift to charities, foundations and other non-profits. There are many ways to structure charitable giving and individuals may wish to consider options for this part of their estate plan.

Health Care Directives:

This document lets you give instructions about your own health care and also allows you the right to name someone else to make health care decisions for you. It also lets you express your wishes regarding donation of organs and the designation of your primary physician.

"We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future." ~ George Bernard Shaw

Durable Powers of Attorney:

An instrument in writing by which one person, as principal, appoints another as his/her agent and confers upon him/her the authority to perform certain specified acts or kinds of acts on behalf of the principal.

Estate Dispute Mediator:

A skilled and experienced professional who uses the mediation method, (an outside of a courtroom setting) and acts as a neutral to facilitate dispute resolution.

"Discourage Litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise when you can. As a peacemaker the lawyer has superior opportunity of being a good man [person]. There will still be business enough." ~ Abraham Lincoln

Business Succession Planning:

The process of identifying the needs and strategies to continue a business in the event of the death of a business owner or major shareholder. The act of putting into place the tools and legal documents which would provide for transition in the event of a principal's death for a family business or partnership.

Probate:

A judicial proceeding that oversees the procedural acts necessary to establish the validity of a Will. The Probate Court also has jurisdiction over the settlement and distribution of a deceased person's estate under a Will or for a person without a Will or Trust.

Conservatorship:

In a conservatorship of a person, a court-appointed fiduciary, the conservator, manages the personal care of the person who cannot properly provide for his or her personal needs for physical health, medical care, food, clothing or shelter. In a conservatorship of the estate, a court-appointed conservator manages the financial affairs of a person who is substantially unable to manage his or her own financial resources or to resist fraud or undue influence.

Elder Abuse:

The physical or financial abuse of a person over age sixty five. Financial Elder Abuse is the number one crime against seniors and the least reported.