Monday, June 07, 2010 Legacy Planning
Almost all of our Kansas City area clients ask us, what is Estate Planning?
In our last couple installments we have been discussing the areas of concern for families and business owners regarding estate planning, which are as follows:
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Lifetime control over financial and health care decisions
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Planning for the cost-effective and expedient transfer of wealth at death
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Family maintenance and protective planning
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Business succession planning
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Charitable planning
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Gift and estate tax planning
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Legacy planning
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Elder law issues
Last week Jason reviewed area 6 – Gift and Estate Tax Planning, today I will cover area 7 - Legacy Planning.
Legacy Planning
Legacy planning recognizes that our roles as estate planners should be much more than simply ensuring that assets are transferred efficiently and expediently. When our clients die, hopefully, they will pass something much more than money or property. They should pass a legacy that demonstrates their values, or what they found important in life.
As estate planning attorneys, we need to find a way to guide our clients into a distribution plan that speaks volumes about the client as a person and not just as a source of inheritance. The distribution plan should help enhance the lives of the client’s beneficiaries. It should motivate and inspire.
Legacy planning emphasizes the belief that wealth goes beyond just material possessions. It involves our heritage (ancestors, traditions, heirlooms), family (beliefs, values, connections), and community (work, friendships, affiliations, and philanthropy).
Finally, legacy planning is as varied as the individual, and means different things to different people. It may translate into preserving the family cabin; funding college educations for grandchildren; rewarding beneficiaries who seek a life of philanthropy and public service (or rewarding beneficiaries who seek out the highest levels of education). Or it may simply mean a plan designed to protect children and other beneficiaries from “Affluenza” or “Sudden Wealth Syndrome”
For more information or if you have questions, please contact us. Please keep the questions and comments coming.
Garrett L. Griffin
BridgeBuilder - Plans for Life |