Fontana Law Firm: Estates

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Estates

Basic Wills: Last Will & Testament without any trusts. Allow you to determine who receives your property after
you pass away.
Trust Wills: Last Will & Testament with trust provisions. Allow you to determine who receives your property after
you pass away. Some property may be held in trust, (e.g., for minor children).
Living Wills: Allow you to determine if you wish to be kept alive by artificial means if you are in a persistive
vegetative state.
Health Care Proxies: Allow you to appoint one or more persons to make health care decisions for you, if you
become unable to do so.
Powers of Attorney: Allow you to appoint one or more persons who can sign your name and manage your
personal affairs while you are alive.
Complete Health Care Package: Includes Last Will & Testament, Living Will, Health Care Proxy, and Power of
Attorney.
Trust Agreements: Can take effect either while you are alive (Inter Vivos) or after you pass away
(Testamentary). Allow you to place some or all of your property into a trust that is managed by a trustee that you
appoint, for the benefit of the beneficiaries that you select.
Estate Planning: Plan your estate to minimize the amount of Estate Taxes that are payable when you pass
away. Structure your assets so that you will be eligible for Medicaid, in the event that you ever need to enter a
Nursing Home. Medicaid will pay for nursing home expenses, while Medicare will not.
Probate and Administration of Estates: Whether or not you have a Will, your legal representative will usually
have to retain an attorney to file a petition in the Surrogate's Court when you pass away. This allows your estate
assets to be collected and distributed in accordance with your Will and the law.
Estate Taxes: When a person dies, if their assets are valued above a certain amount, their estate has to pay
Estate Taxes to New York State and the Federal Government, before the beneficiaries receive their inheritances.
These Estate Taxes are different than Income Taxes. We handle all Federal and State Estate Tax returns, as
well as the final Income Tax returns of the decedent.

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