Understanding Your Estate Plan
A plain-English guide to the documents we prepare and why they matter.
Estate planning is not about paperwork. It’s about clarity.
Clarity for you.
Clarity for your family.
Clarity for the people who may one day need to step in and help.
Below is a practical explanation of the key documents that work in unison to make up a well-designed estate plan, what they actually do, and why each one of them matters.
Documents that apply if you pass…
Last Will and Testament
Your Will answers a simple question:
If something happens to you, who is legally in charge and who receives what?
Your Will:
Names an Executor (the person responsible for wrapping up your affairs)
Directs how assets that are not otherwise designated should be distributed
Names guardians for minor children (if applicable)
But…there’s a key clarification:
Your Will only controls assets that pass through probate.
Assets that are:
Titled in a trust
Jointly owned with survivorship
Designated with a beneficiary (like retirement accounts or life insurance)
…will pass outside of the Will.
Many people think “the Will controls everything.” It does not. That’s why coordination is so important.
Revocable Living Trust (if included in your plan)
A trust is a structure for managing assets — during your lifetime and after.
With a trust:
You maintain full control while you are alive and well
A successor trustee can step in seamlessly if you become incapacitated or pass away
Assets can pass without probate
Distributions can be structured for protection, flexibility, or tax efficiency
A trust can:
Distribute assets outright
Hold assets in ongoing trusts for children or beneficiaries
Provide creditor protection
Help manage blended family concerns
Be very dynamic, in terms of covering contingencies and conditions in a way beneficiary designations cannot
Improve privacy and administrative efficiency
A trust only works if assets are properly titled or beneficiary designations are properly in place — which is why funding the trust and/or aligning beneficiary designations is so critical.
Documents that apply while you are alive…
Durable Power of Attorney (Financial)
This document protects you during your lifetime.
It answers:
If I am alive but unable to act, who can handle things for me?
Your agent under a Durable Power of Attorney can:
Manage bank and investment accounts
Sign tax returns
Handle real estate transactions
Work with financial institutions
Address legal and administrative matters
“Durable” means it remains effective even if you become incapacitated.
Without this document, your family may need to pursue a court-ordered guardianship to manage your finances — which is expensive, public, and slow.
This is one of the most important lifetime protection documents you sign.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
This document appoints someone to make medical decisions if you cannot communicate.
It ensures:
Someone you trust can speak with doctors
Medical providers have clear legal authority to take direction
Decisions are made by the person you chose — not through the probate court, and not by default statutory hierarchy
This document applies only if you cannot make or communicate decisions yourself.
It is about dignity, clarity, and reducing stress during medical crises.
Living Will
A Living Will addresses a narrower question:
If I am terminally ill or permanently unconscious, do I want healthcare providers to be able to stop life-sustaining treatment, or do I want to leave that authority to my agent under my healthcare power of attorney?
It gives guidance regarding:
Artificial nutrition and hydration
Life support measures
End-of-life care preferences
Some clients prefer detailed written direction.
Others prefer to give flexibility to their healthcare agent.
There is no “right” answer — only what is right for you.
How These Documents Work Together
Think of your estate plan as covering two distinct phases:
1️⃣ If you are alive but incapacitated
Durable Power of Attorney
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Living Will
(Trust, if applicable)
2️⃣ After your death
Trust (if applicable)
Will
Beneficiary designations
The power of a well-designed plan is not in any one document.
It’s in how they coordinate.
When everything is aligned:
Assets transfer smoothly
Family members know their roles
Your wishes are clear
Administration is simpler
Conflict risk is reduced
A Final Note
Estate planning is not about planning for death.
It is about protecting the people you care about from confusion, delay, and unnecessary stress.
The goal is simple:
Clear documents.
Aligned assets.
No scavenger hunts.
If you ever have questions about what your documents mean or how they work together, we want you to ask.