At its outbreak, the Coronavirus pandemic sent everyone into panic mode and literally everyone who had no plans began to initiate ways of securing theirs and the future of their loved ones.
It is hard enough to think about death and far more difficult to plan towards it. You can never tell the exact moment it will occur, the good news is the sooner you get started the better. Estate planning is a process that secures both the present and future of our estate. It’s the process that ensure the preservation, management and allocation of an estate in the event of death or incapacity. A lot of things changed this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic. People worked, schooled and traded from the comfort of their homes; thanks to the virtual world technology has helped create. Planning your estate during the lockdown must be stressful as almost if not every process included had to be conducted virtually and to be honest it’s effective.
Draft an estate plan
As soon as you have handled your risk of exposure of the pandemic, you can then look at the future by evaluating your estate plan. If you are yet to draft an estate plan, now is the best time to do so. Remember, if you die without an estate plan, the state government will dictate how your estate will be shared and this might affect those you care about.
Select your representatives
To plan an estate, you are required to select an estate executor. An estate executor is that individual who will act on your behalf after your demise. You must ensure that whoever you’ll be chosen can be trusted.
Update your bank accounts
After your demise, probate will be done to determine the validity of your will among other things. Not all of your properties will undergo probate. For instance, with the payable-on-death designation, some of your property will be distributed to beneficiaries without undergoing probate. In most cases, designating a beneficiary is as easy as logging onto your online bank account and inputting the individual’s contact details.
Create a plan
Some people believe that an estate plan is all about filling out some forms and providing the names of beneficiaries. Estate planning is actually more than most people think it is. This plan consist of an array of directives stating one’s last wish. It consist of a power of attorney, a living trust, a will, etc., all of which are created by effective planning. With the help of a competent estate planning attorney, your estate plan will contain all the needed ingredients.
Proofread your documents
You don’t want to make any error when drafting your estate plan. Even if the estate plan was prepared with the help of the best estate planning attorney on the planet, still go ahead and proofread it yourself. No one is perfect you know, and a simple error can ruin your estate plan. So, ensure you take out time to proofread your documents regardless of who prepared them.
Remote witnessing
Legally, the signing of your will must be physically witnessed by at least two persons who must also sign to attest their presence. However, due to Covid-19, of course, this became difficult. However, the state governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order On April 7 to allow for remote witnessing for wills trusts, healthcare proxies, and statutory gift riders. This means that your will can be witnessed by live video conferencing. All you need to do is connect with the witnesses, and they watch while you draft your document. When drafting your will, your family members cannot be your witness if their names are in the will. Therefore, your witnesses have to be external parties, most likely outside your home.
Contact our Estate Planning Attorney today
With the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been several measures put in place to mitigate the spread of the virus. One of these methods is the social distancing rule. Therefore, if you aren’t ok with scheduling a meeting with us, you can decide to take part in our virtual meeting. In this meeting, you have the chance to ask us questions or talk about your need regarding your estate.
If you need a competent estate planning attorney for your estate, you are at the right place. Our estate planning attorneys are qualified; they also boast of the experience needed to help you craft an ideal estate plan in this trying period.
