Estate Planning

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McLaughlin Legal provides assistance to its clients in planning what will happen to their assets after death, including tax considerations and the transfer of property to desired beneficiaries.

A will is a document created with instructions for assets after death and can be a critical part of an estate plan for everyone thinking about how and to whom their assets will pass. McLaughlin Legal's San Diego attorneys can assist individuals and families plan their estates, including drafting wills and trust.

A trust is an instrument used in an estate plan to accomplish any number of goals. Primarily, a trust creates guidelines for the distribution of assets to designated beneficiaries, avoids probate for all assets that are put into the trust, and minimizes potential tax burdens. Among all of the documents in your estate plan, the trust is the master document.

McLaughlin Legal can provide assistance to its clients with the tax benefits of giving to a cause or organization.

As part of basic documents for estate planning and planning for possible incapacity, most individuals should have a durable power of attorney. A durable power of attorney works only during a lifetime and relates only to the management of assets; it does not address your health care decisions.

Probate is the judicial procedure by which a decedent’s estate is administered and title to assets is transferred from the decedent to the beneficiary. The Court’s job is to establish that a will is valid (if you have a will), and then supervise the distribution of your assets by ensuring that your assets are properly accounted for, that creditors get paid (if you have outstanding debts), and that the balance of your estate reaches your beneficiaries.

Advanced directives can provide instructions to others regarding your health care and other decisions when/if you are unable to communicate those decisions yourself. When creating an advance health care directive, for example, you can appoint health care agents (typically family members or close friends) to assist in carrying out your health care wishes when you are unable to express them yourself.