Estate planning affords you peace of mind, knowing family members will be taken care of in the event of your passing or incapacity. It is important, however, to ensure that your estate planning documents are valid and able to hold up in a trust or will contest or other estate litigation.
I'm Everett Estate litigation lawyer Mark T. Patterson II. I have more than 25 years of litigation experience. I am able to draw on my experience in the courtroom to draft a document that holds up and expresses the intent of the person planning for his or her incapacity or death. Mine is a reputable, established firm of people you can trust that offers reasonable fees for your legal matters involving estate litigation as well as special needs trusts , and family business succession. I also have experience in different areas of law that may help with the client's current problem.
Contact me today for a free consultation by e-mail or telephone. I represent clients in will contests and other estate litigation, including :
* Contested estates
* Will/Trust contests
* Probate litigation
* Guardianship litigation
Durable Power of Attorney
HIPAA is a relatively new federal law designed to limit access to your medical records and protect your privacy. You can designate a person to have access to your health care records whom you can entrust to act on your behalf to make decisions concerning your care, procedures, religious restrictions, or death. We can draft documents including a HIPAA waiver, health care directive, living will, and health care power of attorney. Establishing a durable power of attorney can remove the need for a guardianship proceeding or extended litigation in the event you become unable to make decisions for yourself. Guardianship is always more expensive than establishing a power of attorney.
Basic planning can help prevent such legal disputes. Because I have litigated estate documents, such as wills, I am adept at drafting them as well. I have the experience to know what a trial court is likely to do with any kind of language in a trust document or will.
Special Needs Trust
Everett Special Needs Trusts Attorney
If you are parents caring for a disabled child, it is wise to consider how your child will be taken care of when you are no longer here to provide the care yourselves.
A special needs trust in your will or living trust will allow for the holding of money, property, and other assets for your disabled child without disqualifying your child from receiving state disability benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). As the parent of a profoundly disabled child myself, I have special insight into these issues.
Simply leaving money to your disabled child disqualifies your child from disability benefits that you have already paid for with your tax dollars. A special needs trust is established to supplement the benefits. A special needs trust can set out your wishes to, for example, maintain your child in a residential setting and appropriate dress, while given the care and stimulation necessary for quality of life.
You will also designate a trustee to act on behalf of your disabled child with regard to the trust property and money.
If you are the parent of a disabled child, it is important to apply for disability benefits and to bring a guardianship petition to have a child guardianship in place by the time your child is 18 years of age. The State of Washington will provide a guardian ad litem when necessary.
Everett Estate Planning and Probate Attorney
Your legal needs may pertain to making provisions for your family, applying to serve as a guardian for a minor who may have inherited, a special needs child or an elderly person who requires assistance, or discussing the appropriateness of a community property agreement as a means of avoiding probate court. Whomever you chose, you want the lawyer to have a thorough knowledge of estate planning and administration as well as care for members of the family who require our attention.
In addition, it is best to have a lawyer with extensive litigation experience, as knowing what will work and not work in a conflict is best. Additionally, taking appropriate steps to avoid unnecessary conflict is often the best measure of experienced counsel.
When you meet with me to discuss your estate matter in the historic home that serves as my law office, I will listen to your concerns and goals, assess the best course of action to take, and work with you to help you best make plans for the future.
Fees
I have found that families are worried about the costs related to probate; however, they typically spend more on the funeral than the estate plan and probate that follows. The money you spend on securing a good probate attorney can have benefits that far outweigh the initial costs.
For some of my services I provide a flat fee. Where the matter is not all that complex, such as where an estate is not taxable, my experience has been the clients and I both enjoy a less stressful initial meeting when we are not mindful of time. Also, subsequent planning and drafting of the estate planning documents is easier if the fee is established initially.
For more information on rates and to discuss your particular estate planning matter with please contact me, Mark T. Patterson II.
Mark T. Patterson II
Estates and Probate Lawyer
Rockefeller Law Office LLP
3116 Rockefeller Avenue
Everett, WA 98201
Tel: 425-258-3511
Fax: 425-339-2122
pete@rockefellerlaw.com
