Estate Planning
Here is some help with Estate Plans in Colorado.  An Estate Plan  is an orderly arrangement prepared during lifetime to provide for the conservation and disposition of one's property/assets.
 
An Effective Estate Plan includes:

• Gifts and other lifetime disposition of assets
• Insurance planning (esp. in small family businesses)
• Planning for disability or incapacity before death
• Addressing family concerns and keeping family harmony
• Addressing Tax concerns
• Power of Attorney 
• Medicaid Planning
• The Title of Assets and Beneficiaries

...and other areas, depending on the assets, the family members, potential conflicts, and health circumstances

Essential Parts of an Estate Plan
Will (or Trust, see below)
This document will specify the disposition of your assets upon death and appoint a Personal Representative (or Executor) to handle the Estate after death.
    
Power of Attorney
This document allows you to appoint someone you trust to make important medical or financial decisions for you in the event that you are incapacitated and unable to make the decisions yourself.

Living Will
Also known as an Advance Directive for Medical/Surgical treatment, this document allows you to make decisions about treatment in the event that you have an incurable or irreversible condition which would require life sustaining procedures that would only serve to postpone the moment of death. This document comes into effect only if you are unable to speak for yourself and make your wishes known. There are many specific choices to be made by you in this document.

Other Estate Planning
Trust
A Trust is not necessary for everyone.   The following are reasons a Trust may be used:

• Planning for minor children or incompetent or incapacitated loved ones
• Federal Estate Tax planning
• Delegating investment and management power
• Protection from creditors
• Managing assets to pass on to future generations
• Charity donations

Marital Agreement
Marital agreements (also known as Pre-nuptial or Post-nuptial Agreements)  are not for everyone.  They are used for some of the following reasons:

• Managing family property to go to siblings or children from a previous marriage
• Limit debt responsibility
• As a management tool when spouses have different views on finances

Probate
Probate in Colorado, put simply, is the legal process in which the Estate (or property) of the decedent (the person who has passed away) is administered.  It is the name of the Court procedure used to deal with assets of a deceased person. 

• Probate is different in every state and is subject to change. Usually a lawyer is required to oversee the process and make sure everything is done correctly.
  
• An attorney who specializes in Estate Planning and Probate will be most familiar and up to date with the process.
  

Probate generally includes:

• Lodging the Will with the court
  
• Appointing a Personal Representative ("Executor")
  
• Collection of assets
  
• Paying liabilities and taxes
  
• Distributing to the heirs or named beneficiaries of a Will
  

Colorado Probate

• Colorado Probate compared with other states, such at California, is very efficient and affordable. 
  
• An Average Estate can be administered for $3,000 and up depending on the assets and complexity of the estate (in certain situations it may be less).  
• Fees and costs are based on the actual time spent by the attorneys and staff.  Colorado does not allow attorneys to take a percentage of an Estate.  The fee must be reasonable for what the legal community charges for such work.

Colorado Probate varies, here are some of the terms that you might hear:

Informal Probate
This process mainly involves filing forms and giving notice.  Informal probate is streamlined with the Personal Representative (Executor) doing most of the work and very little court filings are needed.  The various forms and requirements are now e-filed with the court.  An attorney will lead the Personal Representative (Executor) in the process and make sure that all the proper forms are filed and that creditors are notified within the timeline specified by the statutes.  Having an attorney oversee the process can prevent future problems with the Court, Creditors, the IRS or among Beneficiaries who question the Personal Representative.

Formal Probate
Formal probate has more Court involvement and requires hearings and notice requirements.  Various situations can require Formal Probate or make it the better choice.  A common use of Formal Probate is when the Will's validity needs to be established.  Due to the court hearings and more attorney involvement, the cost of Formal Probate is usually more expensive than Informal Probate. 

Non-probate Transfers
Property can be transferred outside of Probate, and is not subject to the Will.  This will depend on how property is held.  Property can be transferred avoiding Probate through the following means:

• Beneficiary designations
  
• POD (Payable On Death) designations
  
• TOD (Transfer On Death) designations
  
• Trust distributions (only if the money is properly held by the trust or trustee)
  
• Property held in Joint Tenancy
  
• Gifts given during life (note there may be tax consequences associated with life gifts and an attorney should be consulted)
  

Beneficiary Deeds
When properly prepared and recorded, Beneficiary Deeds can avoid Probate for Real Estate (homes, rentals, etc.).  This deed transfers ownership upon the death and can be revoked by a recorded document at any time.  In the right situation, this is a great planning device. It does not give ownership or rights to the beneficiary during your life.

The Information on this page is not legal advice.