Wills and Estate Administration
This area of legal practice deals with the financial and medical directives you may wish to issue during your lifetime. The instructions you issue through a will dictate what will happen if you die. A durable power of attorney or advanced medical directive sets forth your desires in the event you are physically or mentally unable to make your wishes known.
A Will is a document prepared to direct how you wish your assets to be distributed after your death. Should you fail to address these matters before your death, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has enacted statutes which would direct how these issues are to be resolved.
An estate must be opened for each person who dies with assets.
- If there is no will, one of the person's heirs must apply to the court for Letters of Administration in order to gather the assets of the estate, pay bills of the estate, and distribute the assets according to the statute.
- If the decedent had a will, then the matters are to be completed according to the will.
It is essential that the estate representative retain the services of an attorney competent in the area in order to properly conclude these matters in a timely and professional manner to avoid problems which may arise among the heirs, or with taxing authorities.
Failure to address your legal issues by virtue of preparing Powers of Attorney, Advanced Medical Directives and Wills often results in litigation which can thwart your intentions, and almost certainly result in litigation. Such litigation will greatly extend the amount of time it takes to administer your estate and increase expenses, which will reduce the amount of assets available for distribution to your heirs.
Reviewing your wishes regarding your estate with an attorney entails a minimum amount of time. This small investment of time will greatly reduce the time, money and aggravation your heirs will encounter if you fail or neglect to make provisions for your financial and medical care during your lifetime and for the distribution for your estate following your death.
Our estate planning and estate administration attorneys are:
