Albright Rainey Law Firm, LLC is a law firm that takes pride in providing quality legal services to its clients in the greater Alabama area. Its team of knowledgeable and experienced attorneys handles issues regarding estate planning, business law, construction law, family law, real estate law, and more. Albright Rainey Law Firm, LLC also offers a free initial consultation.
Brett S. Sheedy, Attorney at Law, LLC is a Birmingham-based legal practice that specializes in estate planning, business law, and tax law. It has provided honest, reliable, and efficient legal services at reasonable rates to the community for many years. This law firm has been recognized by University of Alabama Birmingham National Alumni Society as one of the Top 25 in Business Excellence Awardee. Brett S. Sheedy, Attorney at Law, LLC also offers a free consultation.
Burton & Associates, LLC is a law firm in Birmingham, AL that takes pride in providing its clients with thorough and quality legal services. Its team of reliable and experienced lawyers specializes in estate planning, tax law, real estate law, estates and wills, and business and non-profit incorporation. Past clients commend Burton & Associates, LLC's lawyers for providing friendly, honest, and efficient services.
Cartwright Law Center, LLC, serves individuals in Birmingham. It provides counsel and representation to clients dealing with estate planning matters. The legal practice takes on cases related to last will and testament as well as power of attorney disputes. It also handles health care and proxy and living will, irrevocable trusts, and funeral and burial instruction lawsuits. Additionally, it caters to startup businesses and large companies that need corporate law solutions. Cartwright Law Center has been in operation for over two decades.
GrandView Financial Group, LLC is a full-service financial firm in Birmingham, AL that takes pride in providing its clients with the highest quality of services at reasonable rates. Its professional team includes two certified financial planners. The firm handles estate planning, personal finance, retirement income planning, investment planning, college education planning, and insurance planning services. GrandView Financial Group, LLC's advisors are available online 24 hours a day, seven days a week to help each client with their business needs.
Hill, Hill & Gossett, P.C. is a Springville-based legal practice that has been serving individuals, families, businesses, and government organizations in the community for more than 30 years. It is composed professional attorneys who are knowledgeable in estate planning, corporate law, family law, wills and probate, criminal law, and more. This law firm strives to provide quality legal services and excellent customer service.
Kendall Maddox and Associates is a trusted law firm that has been serving families and businesses in Birmingham, AL for many years. Its team of knowledgeable and experienced attorneys handles a variety of legal services, such as estate planning, incapacity planning, IRA and retirement planning, asset protection, business planning, trust administration and probate, and more. This law firm also offers free estate planning seminars.
Moses & Moses, P.C. is a law firm in Birmingham, AL that strives to provide efficient and cost-effective legal services for individuals and businesses in the community. Its team of reliable and experienced lawyers handles estate planning, elder planning, business law, corporate income tax, and probate and elder law. Moses & Moses, P.C. is registered with the Birmingham Bar Association, National Elder Law Foundation, and Super Lawyers.
Scozzaro Law, LLC is a reliable law firm in Helena, AL that takes pride in providing quality legal assistance to individuals, families, and businesses at affordable rates. It offers a wide variety of legal services such as estate planning and probate, family law and divorce, criminal and litigation, and more. Scozzaro Law, LLC is registered with the Alabama State Bar and the Shelby County Bar Association.
Stephen K. Greene, LLC is a trusted law firm that has been serving the Birmingham area since 2008. It was founded by a knowledgeable and experienced Birmingham lawyer, Stephen K. Greene, Esquire who specializes in wills, trusts, and estate planning and probate. He is registered with the Birmingham Bar Association and the American Bar Association. Stephen K. Greene, LLC is committed to providing the highest quality of legal services at affordable rates.
The Greene Law Firm, LLC is a trusted law firm in Birmingham, AL that was founded by Jay Patrick Greene, Esquire, CPA. This law firm is dedicated to providing its clients with efficient and cost-effective legal services such as traditional and modern estate planning, Medicaid planning, guardianship and conservatorship proceedings, probate and trust administration, special needs planning, and more. It is registered with the Medicaid Practice Network and the Birmingham Bar Association. The Greene Law Firm, LLC also offers free estate planning workshops.
The Hirschfield Law Group, LLC is a team of versatile and experienced lawyers that is committed to providing its clients in Birmingham, AL with the highest quality of legal services at reasonable rates. This firm practices various areas of law, including business law, estate planning, criminal law, antitrust law, and property law. The Hirschfield Law Group, LLC also offers a free initial consultation.
An estate consists of the total assets that form an individual’s net worth, no matter how large or small. Estate planning attorneys use their in-depth knowledge of state and federal laws to help people best manage what will happen with their estates after they die or become incapacitated. Estate planning attorneys can prepare wills, form trusts, reduce estate tax burdens, and decrease or eliminate the need for probate court.
With the many intricacies of assets, taxes, and state and federal laws that can affect a person’s estate, an estate planning lawyer can be a valuable professional asset, no matter how large or small a person’s estate may be. An estate planning attorney can:
Estate planning attorneys can create trusts and wills. Through a will, an attorney can help a client designate their estate’s beneficiaries and assign an executor to represent the will in probate court. These attorneys can also create trusts, allowing a client to assign a trustee to oversee the estate, potentially avoiding probate court and holding assets to be distributed over time.
While both estate plans and wills officially document how their owners wish to allocate certain assets after their death, there are key differences. In estate planning, a will is often just one of several documents that form a comprehensive plan. In a will, people must designate a person responsible for executing their will after their death. The will can include guardians for their children when they die and beneficiaries to receive an inheritance of money, property, and other assets.
To create a thorough and effective estate plan, individuals should follow these steps:
The length of the process can vary greatly depending on the size and complexity of the estate, the specific law office, and whether there’s an emergency or urgent need. If you’re using an attorney, you can generally expect it to take one to five weeks. You may be able to speed up the process by immediately providing your attorney with any bank statements or other documents they need.
A trust is an agreement between a grantor, a trustee, and a beneficiary. In this agreement, the grantor allocates funds or real property assets to the trustee to be held either until the grantor passes away or until a specific, agreed-upon date. At that point, it's the responsibility of the trustee to distribute funds or property to the beneficiary or beneficiaries. While there are similarities between a will and a trust, a will is a more comprehensive document that typically requires probate court, while a trust allows assets to pass to the beneficiary without probate.
When opening a trust fund, a grantor allocates a trustee to oversee and manage assets in the account. This trustee can sometimes be a relative, an estate lawyer, or a bank that acts as the legal owner of the trust. While holding assets, the trustee is required to file taxes on trust assets.
A living trust enables a grantor to manage their assets through a trustee while still alive. They can continually add funds and/or property to their trust fund by transferring them to the trustee, who accepts ownership of everything held in the fund. The grantor can name a beneficiary for their trust, and their assets will be automatically transferred to that person or establishment upon their death.
No, a lawyer is not required to draft or complete a will. However, there are some scenarios in which hiring an estate lawyer to assist with a will is a good idea, including when children or high-value assets are involved. Additionally, an estate lawyer can help to reduce probate fees and taxes paid by loved ones after a person dies. It's also best to work with a professional to ensure that the will addresses everything necessary, such as funeral plans, guardianship, and asset distribution.
Yes, and individuals who have a living trust should also have a will. While a living trust enables a person to leave funds and assets to a loved one when they're gone, a will is required to cover any assets that aren't included in the trust, such as guardianship of dependents, funeral plans, and forgiveness of outstanding debts, if applicable.
The cost of setting up a trust varies quite a bit depending on a variety of factors, including terms that are in place, special provisions for minor beneficiaries, and trustees' basic fees. In most cases, the minimum cost of setting up a trust is about $1,500, but depending on the factors mentioned above, this cost can increase by thousands of dollars.
