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Serving Jacksonville since 1969.
Areas of Practice - Estate Planning

Our firm provides legal services relating to wills, trusts, estate planning and individual taxes. We work with our clients to plan for the efficient and orderly transfer of property upon death. This includes helping clients select methods for the disposition of assets to meet family goals, to effect charitable donations, to minimize tax implications and to limit probate and related expenses. In addition, we prepare living wills and durable powers of attorney for health care, property and financial matters.

Ten Reasons to Make a Legal Will

I. Make the most difficult time for your family easier.
2. Name who takes care of your children.
3. Prevent bitter family disputes.
4. Simplify the legal process.
5. Name who gets your assets.
6. Prevent confusion.
7. Protect the family home or business.
8. Minimize legal costs.
9. Eliminate cost for personal representative bond.
10. Give consideration to your personal choices.

Ten Reasons to Consult an Estate Planning Attorney

1. Be sure that estate planning documents are correctly prepared and executed properly.
2. Develop a Trust or Living Trust.
3. Help probate the Last Will & Testament after a loved one dies.
4. Protect and preserve assets.
5. Arrange the emotional and financial security of your family.
6. Minimize estate taxes.
7. Address specific state or local probate and tax laws.
8. Have an attorney serve as personal representative of the Estate.
9. Address complex issues related to prior marriages.
10. Keep the family business or personal assets whole.

What does an estate plan cost?

We do not charge for the initial meeting with the client. At the initial meeting, we will work with the client to determine the client’s estate planning objectives, and we will advise the client what documents the client will need to accomplish the client’s estate planning goals. We will also explain why we are making those recommendations. Once the client and we agree what documents we will be preparing, we will provide the client with a firm fee quotation. Our fee is not to be paid until the estate planning documents are executed by the client.

The average estate plan usually includes four (4) or five (5) documents, such as a Last Will and Testament, Living Trust, Power of Attorney, Designation of Health Care Surrogate and a Living Will. Our services include the document preparation, a review of the documents with the client, final editing, revisions of the documents and handling the client’s execution of the documents. Many law firms may simply mail drafts of the estate planning documents to the client, ask the client to read the drafts and advise if any changes are needed. This is not our approach. We want to review the documents with the client and explain why certain language is used in the documents. Our goal is to have the client understand the documents. We furnish drafts of the documents to the client for a more careful reading after the review appointment.We then complete any final editing as necessary prior to execution.

What if all four (4) or five (5) documents are not needed?

If the client already has some of the documents and/or requires less estate planning, we will prepare and charge for only the documents actually needed by that client.

What is my next step?

Call our office at (904) 390-2705 and make an appointment to meet with us to discuss your estate planning objectives. There is no charge for this initial visit, and you are under no obligation to us after that initial meeting. We will review your goals with you, advise you what we think you need, why you need it, and what we will charge to prepare the documents. You then decide whether or not to retain our law firm to prepare your estate planning documents.