Why You Should Always Be Honest With Your Attorney

Estate planning might seem like a complicated process, and you may be tempted to withhold personal or private information from an attorney, especially when first meeting them. Often, when you schedule a meeting with an estate planning attorney, they will ask you to fill out paperwork detailing your family, concerns, and general asset information. Sometimes, potential clients are hesitant to completely fill out this paperwork before the meeting. However, it is crucial that you are always upfront about both personal and family dynamics as well as financial information from the beginning. Why is this so important?

‍We can’t help you if we don’t know what we are planning for.

‍There are two main categories of information that we must gather to have an efficient and productive consultation: family and asset information.

Family Information

Our questionnaire begins by asking for your own information, such as your name, address, phone numbers, and your spouse or partner’s information. However, your additional family information is just as important. We need to know about any children you have, including those who have passed away or with whom you do not have a relationship. If you choose not to inform your attorney about a child just because you don’t want them to receive anything from you, this could have severe consequences. Specifically, attorneys often use the phrase “to my descendants, per stirpes,” which essentially states that your children will split equally, and if a child has died before you, their children will inherit that share. If you have chosen not to list a child, we will not be aware that this phrase could have unintended consequences!

This “per stirpes” concept is also important to discuss, as it can affect the types of documents we recommend. For example, if you do not want a “backup beneficiary” for a child who passes before you, you may be fine with an Enhanced Life Estate Deed instead of a Revocable Living Trust. However, if you would prefer a grandchild to receive the deceased child’s share, a trust might be the better option.

A final piece of family information that we often like to know in advance is the age of those involved in the plan. An estate plan for a young couple with young children can be very different from a plan for an elderly couple with mature children.

Asset Information

There are two important reasons why we ask about your assets and financial information: to minimize taxes as much as possible and to guide you toward the best type of estate plan for your asset type and level.

While Florida does not currently have state estate taxes, we do occasionally need to address federal estate tax, gifting concerns, and capital gains. These are items we note to discuss based on your reported asset levels. Generally, if we don’t think these issues are a major concern for you, we won’t spend much time during your consultation discussing them. Why spend half of your appointment detailing complex tax strategies that don’t even apply to you?

As mentioned, many factors can affect the type of plan we will recommend for you. While we always discuss all options with you, we will usually recommend the plan that best fits your needs based on your family dynamics, concerns, and types of assets. For example, if your estate consists primarily of real estate and you have mature children who will inherit the house and sell it without disputes, we may recommend an Enhanced Life Estate Deed. However, if you have a large amount of money in retirement accounts that you want to leave to your 18-year-old child, we are likely to recommend a trust to prevent them from withdrawing and spending the money recklessly.

The most common concern potential clients report about filling out this information is that we might charge extra based on your asset level or the amount of work involved. While plans that require additional documents, such as multiple documents for guardian nominations for several children, might sometimes be quoted a higher fee, we have a set flat fee for all types of plans and “upgrades” available to you. We can provide this fee sheet ahead of time if this is a concern before your consultation. Rest assured, we will never charge you more money simply because you have more assets.

Being open with your attorney about all your family structure and assets is crucial for effective estate planning. It ensures that your plan is complete, your wishes are honored, and your loved ones are protected. By sharing all the details, you help create a clear, effective plan that will benefit everyone in the long run.