Long Island Elder Law & Estate Planning

A Long Island elder attorney can provide you with invaluable assistance in making updates to your last will and testament. It is important to periodically update your will so it is reflective of your current wishes. As you make updates, you need to be clear about which version of your will is the latest one. You need to follow all formal New York requirements for creating a will, and you need to make clear if you are repudiating your old will or if you are simply adding on additional instructions. Long Island elder law attorney

Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC can provide you with help in updating your will. You should contact us when you have made the decision to make changes so you can speak with a Long Island elder law attorney who has the knowledge to ensure your updates are enforceable. You don’t want your instructions not to be followed, or your true wishes not to be respected, because of mistakes made when updating your will. Let us help you to do it right.

How a Long Island Elder Law Attorney Helps You Update Your Will

A Long Island elder law attorney can provide you with guidance on whether a will needs to be updated or not, based on what your current situation is and what life changes you are making. An attorney can also help you to determine if there are other steps you may prefer to take instead of just updating your will. For example, if you have acquired new property and you want it to transfer to certain heirs, you could potentially update your will to facilitate this by instructing which heirs the property should go to. On the other hand, you could also create a trust and transfer the property into it, so the trust administration process would be used to transfer that particular asset instead of the asset transferring in probate.

If updating your will is the best course of action to address the changes in your life situation or changes in estate planning goals, then your attorney will help you to decide if you should repudiate your old will and make an entirely new will or if you should make an addendum to your current will. Which option is best will depend upon many factors, including the extent of the changes that you wish to make.

You will need to ensure that you have followed all of the formal legal steps necessary to make or update your will, whichever option you select, because you want your new instructions to be enforceable. Your attorney can help you to make sure there is no confusion over which will is the right one and can help you to ensure your will is as updated as possible.

When to Talk with a Long Island Elder Law Attorney About Updating Your Will

Keeping an updated will at all times is important. Fidelity Investments provides a summary of when your will and estate plan may need to be updated. Essentially, it is advisable to make a periodic review of your plan to see if it is still a reflection of your most current wishes. If it is not, then it is important to change it because something could happen to you at any time and your instructions would be followed, even if you no longer necessarily wanted them to be followed.

Fidelity Investments also recommends that you make updates when certain key life events happen. Some of the many examples of those key life events include a marriage or divorce; the birth of a child or grandchildren; educational needs of a child or grandchild changing; taking on large debts; starting a business; or acquiring substantial new assets. Whenever circumstances in your family or financial life change in such a way that your instructions for your debt and assets should change, it becomes time to reach out to a Long Island elder law attorney for assistance.

Contact a Long Island Elder Law Attorney Today for Help

Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC has extensive experience providing assistance to clients with making changes to their estate plan so they can create a new enforceable plan appropriate to their current life situation. We can provide the guidance and advice you need so your new plan is going to be enforced after your death. To find out more about updating a will and making a comprehensive estate plan, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online to speak with a Long Island elder law attorney who can help you.

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About Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney

Mark S. Eghrari is an attorney in private practice in Smithtown, New York. He has been in practice since 1988. Mark S. Eghrari provides extensive estate and tax planning services to individuals and businesses. Mr. Eghrari’s primary focus is helping clients avoid probate, minimize or eliminate Federal and State Estate taxes and protect their assets from the high cost of nursing care, if they become ill.