Does an estate plan remain valid after you have a child? It may seem an unusual question, but it came up in estate planning for a young couple we’ll call Jen and Mike. They said, “Look, we have a one year old and we might want to have another child or two in the future. If so, what happens to our estate planning documents? Will they remain valid?” The answer for them and others in this situation is that one can always amend the estate plan and build upon it. If Jen and Mike have more kids in the future, they can amend their estate plan to specifically name the new children. This uses the existing estate plan without starting from scratch. In addition, one can include after-born children. Such a provision states that if a child is born after the estate plan is signed, that child is included in the plan as if named. It serves as additional security until the plan is updated to actually name the child. When it comes to estate planning, there’s always a major life event that is either anticipated or a possible concern. Life is just that complex. That’s why estate planning is not intended to be just something that you do once and have it fixed in time. Due to its importance, you don’t want to put off estate planning for a potential future event. Instead, it’s better to just discuss it in the context of planning. There’s always going to be one more thing on the horizon. But waiting for a "perfect time" to take action instead can lead to getting caught without any kind of estate planning in place when a real need arises. A more sound strategy is to put a foundation into place today, and calibrate it as needed to keep up with changes as they occur. To schedule an appointment with Windy City Legal, visit windycityestateplan.com

What are the inheritance rights of heirs? Can you control the money that your heirs, including family members such as your spouse and children, are going to receive from you? The answer depends heavily on how you structure an estate plan. If your estate plan is focused around a will, you should understand that the will is a document that transfers assets in the manner of a gift in the future. And when you give a gift, you cannot restrict what the recipient receives or how the recipient uses it. It’s similar to how funds are transferred through a beneficiary designation. The plan custodian or brokerage will simply transfer the assets as directed by the beneficiary designation. Once that transfer occurs, there’s no further restriction on what happens with those assets. What about situations where there is a joint bank account or financial account already in place? The account is jointly held by the grantor and the beneficiary. In this case, there probably won’t be any restriction on the inheritance rights of heirs – certainly not to the beneficiary using those assets now. What estate planning does is that it affords an opportunity to implement a trust. Within a trust, you can restrict the age at which assets will be transferred along with the purposes for which they will be paid out. So if the intended beneficiary is either too young to receive assets directly or just does not have the financial sophistication and wherewithal to receive them outright, the trust provides a critically important vehicle. If you have questions how to best structure your estate, feel free to contact us at Windy City Legal.

Sometimes couples with young children ask whether a child under age 18 can receive an inheritance. The question of child inheritance is a good one. In Illinois, a minor child cannot receive his or her inheritance while they’re still under 18. In a probate situation, if both parents were to pass away, the court would set aside assets intended for the child. An order would then be entered allowing the child to claim them upon reaching the proper age, but would not award them to the child outright. Is there any way you can go about planning for this type of situation involving child inheritance? Yes, by setting up a trust that will hold the assets for the benefit of the child. Any decisions would be made by the person acting as the trustee and consistent with the terms of the trust. The assets could be potentially used for the benefit of the child prior to reaching age 18. There are a couple of other advantages of going this route. First, in a child inheritance situation where the assets are being administered by the trust, there would not be a need for a separate probate court proceeding, at least for this purpose. Secondly, the trust may allow the delivery of assets to be stretched out over a broader period of time. Therefore, the child would be receiving them later on in life as opposed to inheriting assets all at once upon reaching age 18. This can be a way to protect the assets and ensure they will be available over time. If you have questions about how to set up your estate to address such considerations, feel free to contact us at Windy City Legal.

When talking with individuals or families to do an estate plan, it’s not unusual to get the question, “Can this plan be used to take care of the family pet?” Good news: Yes. Illinois allows you to create what’s commonly known as a pet trust. The pet trust is a legally recognized trust that works in a similar way to a traditional trust that might apply to family members, but with a more narrow purpose. The pet trust is a useful way within estate planning to make sure that the animal who has been there for you no matter what, day in and day out, is going to be taken care of in the context of your plan. The statute allows pet trusts to provide for a range of different pets or domestic animals. Upon our first conversation, we’ll take down some key information as well round out the terms of the trust, including a detailed description of the animal or animals to be provided for, appointment of the person who will be the trustee and be able to provide day-to-day care for the designated pet or pets, as well as an allocation of funds to be used in caring for the animals. One can optionally designate an additional person to verify the trustee is taking care of the animals and using the resources of the trust wisely. If you have questions about how to set up a pet trust within an estate plan, go to windycityestateplan.com, and select a time for us to connect.

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Who should be the guardian of your children when you and your spouse don’t agree on who to choose? --- Estate Talk focuses on Illinois estate planning and other estate topics. You will find information on wills, trusts, healthcare planning, protecting you family, charitable giving, asset protection, and more. It’s here to help you create value and worry-free security for your family and loved ones. Estate Talk is produced by Ian Brodsky of Windy City Legal, a law firm located at 53 W. Jackson Blvd., Suite 1510, Chicago, Illinois, tel 312-278-1187. Estate Talk and the videos and other content posted there are attorney advertising material and not legal advice for any particular situation or matter.