Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog
Estate planning in Texas can be a stressful process, no matter the circumstances surrounding it. When there is possible familial conflict, however, estate planning and probate can become even more tenuous for everyone involved. To avoid family feuds, we at McCulloch & Miller recommend a few strategies that can help steer your loved ones clear of frustrating fights and emotionally charged conversations.
Plan Ahead
The biggest piece of advice we can give you in order to keep everything (and everyone) at peace is to plan ahead. By drafting your estate plans early and by making sure everything is set in stone as soon as possible, your family can grow accustomed to the preferences you articulate in those documents. Unfortunately, the alternative is that loved ones will be caught by surprise, which rarely goes over well.
Set a Family Meeting
Once you have finalized your estate planning documents, set a meeting with your family so that everyone can understand how you have organized your assets. Make sure your loved ones feel included by asking them if they have questions or if they need any additional information. By communicating clearly throughout the process, you can make sure to do everything in your power to help your family avoid a high-stress situation down the road.
Create Solid Estate Planning Documents
If you create detailed, accurate, procedurally sufficient estate planning documents, you can make it easy for your family after you are gone. You can, for example, put your assets into a trust in order to avoid probate altogether, which can eliminate a good portion of potential family conflict. You can write your estate planning documents with as much specificity as you want, which can help future courts and representatives understand exactly what you intended as you were drawing up the documents.
By creating an estate plan that is difficult to contest, you can ensure your wishes are respected in the future. You can also, though, ensure that your family members face minimal possibility of feuds, given that your loved ones will understand there is very little they can do to dispute your will’s instructions. By hiring a competent, experienced estate planning attorney, you can make this goal a reality and keep the peace in your family as they think through the long term.
Do You Have Questions for a Texas Attorney About Your Estate Plans?
In order to make sure your estate plans are on the right track, give our office a call at McCulloch & Miller, PLLC. Our Texas estate planning attorneys are experts in estate planning and probate, and we counsel hundreds of clients each week on how to make sure their needs are taken care of. If you have not yet figured out how you will move forward with your own estate planning, don’t wait – give us a call today. For a consultation with a member of our team, give us a call today at 713-936-9073. You can also fill out our online form to have an estate planning attorney reach back out to you as soon as possible.