Estate Planning
Wills | Trusts | Probate & Estate Planning
Our Probate & DFW Estate Planning Attorney Services
At Sullivan Law Offices, we understand that thoughtful estate planning is essential for protecting your assets and ensuring your wishes are honored. Serving the Dallas-Fort Worth community since 2016, our experienced attorneys are dedicated to guiding you through every aspect of the estate planning process.
Wills
A will is a foundational estate planning document that outlines how your assets should be distributed after your death. It allows you to name beneficiaries, appoint guardians for minor children, and designate an executor to manage your estate. A legally valid will ensures your wishes are clearly documented and followed, minimizing the potential for disputes.
Revocable & Irrevocable Trusts
Trusts offer greater control over how and when your assets are distributed. A revocable trust can be altered or revoked during your lifetime and helps keep your estate out of probate. An irrevocable trust cannot be changed once established and is often used for tax benefits, asset protection, and Medicaid planning. Both types of trusts are powerful tools for customizing your legacy.
Planning to Avoid Probate
Avoiding probate can save your loved ones time, legal fees, and stress. Estate planning strategies such as trusts, beneficiary designations, and Transfer on Death Deeds allow assets to pass directly to heirs without court involvement, ensuring a smoother and more private transition.
Trust Administration
Trust administration is the process of managing and distributing assets held in a trust according to the terms set by the grantor. This includes paying debts, filing taxes, and transferring property to beneficiaries. Proper administration ensures compliance with legal requirements and helps prevent conflicts among heirs.
Business Succession Planning
Succession planning ensures the smooth transfer of ownership and management for business owners. Whether passing the business to a family member, partner, or buyer, a well-structured plan helps protect the company’s value and supports continuity during transitions.
Special Needs Trusts
A special needs trust allows you to provide for a loved one with disabilities without affecting their eligibility for government benefits like Medicaid or SSI. These trusts are carefully designed to fund supplemental needs while preserving access to essential public assistance.
Charitable Giving & Legacy Planning
Charitable giving strategies such as charitable trusts or donor-advised funds can help you support the causes you care about while gaining potential tax advantages. Legacy planning integrates your values into your estate plan, creating a lasting impact for future generations.
Estate Planning in DFW
When starting your estate planning journey, it’s essential to define your priorities – whether that means creating a will, establishing revocable or irrevocable trusts, planning to avoid probate, or appointing trusted individuals through powers of attorney and advanced healthcare directives. Estate planning in Dallas-Fort Worth can involve complex legal and financial considerations, so working with an experienced estate planning attorney is essential to protecting your legacy.
At Sullivan Law Offices, we’ve been helping families throughout DFW since 2016 with thoughtful, customized estate planning solutions. From trust administration and asset protection strategies to business succession planning and special needs trusts, we guide our clients through every step. Our goal is to ensure that your wishes are honored, your loved ones are protected, and your legacy continues for generations.
Wills & Trusts for Estate Planning in Texas
Having a complete estate plan replaces the state’s default provisions with your personalized instructions. Determine the future of your assets through professionally drafted wills and trusts by the experienced estate planning attorneys at Sullivan Law Offices. Our Dallas legal team specializes in creating customized solutions that protect your assets and honor your wishes.
Wills vs. Trusts: Understanding Your Options
A will specifies how your assets will be distributed after your passing. In contrast, a trust can acquire and distribute your assets immediately upon creation. Many of our clients incorporate both revocable and irrevocable trusts in their estate planning strategy. An irrevocable trust cannot be modified after creation without beneficiary consent, judicial modifications, or decanting procedures. Alternatively, a revocable trust (living trust) offers flexibility, allowing changes at any time while providing planning to avoid probate and streamlining trust administration.
Contact our office today for a free consultation to explore the estate planning options available to achieve your goals and protect what matters most.
Powers of Attorney (Medical & Financial)
Powers of attorney allow you to authorize a trusted individual to make crucial decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. A financial power of attorney handles matters such as banking and investments, while a medical power of attorney enables someone to make healthcare decisions per your wishes.
Transfer on Death Deed
A Transfer on Death (TOD) Deed allows real estate to pass directly to a named beneficiary upon the owner’s death, bypassing probate. It’s a cost-effective and straightforward way to ensure property transfers smoothly without delay or court involvement.
Advanced Healthcare Directives
Also known as a living will, an advanced healthcare directive outlines your preferences for medical treatment if you cannot communicate. It may include instructions on life-sustaining measures, pain management, and organ donation, helping loved ones and providers honor your medical choices.
Asset Protection Strategies
Asset protection involves legally structuring your estate to shield wealth from potential risks such as lawsuits, creditors, or long-term care costs. Common tools include irrevocable trusts, limited liability entities, and insurance strategies designed to preserve your financial legacy.
DFW Estate Planning Attorneys
At Sullivan Law Offices, our estate planning attorneys take time to understand your unique goals and explain the various legal tools available to achieve them. Some clients prefer attending our informative seminars, while others opt for phone consultations or face-to-face meetings with our experienced estate planning team.
Expert Guidance Through Complex Decisions
Estate planning involves numerous important considerations, whether you’re planning for the future or documenting end-of-life wishes. Our services help lighten this burden by providing peace of mind to you and your family. We ensure your specific instructions are followed through with wills, trusts, and other wealth transfer mechanisms. Our dedicated team listens carefully to your requests to develop appropriate legal solutions.
Efficient Two-Step Planning Process
Our streamlined estate planning typically involves just two meetings with your attorney. The first focuses on discussing your estate planning goals and gathering essential details. During the second meeting, we will review the documents you have completed and facilitate the signing process. Most clients complete this process within two weeks.
Contact us to begin creating your customized estate plan with attorneys who prioritize your specific needs and concerns.
Revocable Trusts
& Living Trusts
A revocable trust allows an individual to change or cancel the trust at any time while the grantor is still living.
Irrevocable
Trusts
Irrevocable trusts cannot be modified without the agreement of all beneficiaries, judicial modification
or decanting.
Medicaid Trusts
Medicaid trusts can help elderly individuals pay their medical and living expenses from a trust where their income or assets are placed. This is especially helpful if their assets would make them ineligible for Medicaid.
Wills
Wills and testaments are legal documents that express property, possession, and wealth distribution instructions after a person’s death. These may also express who is to manage property up until its final distribution.
Living Wills
A living will is a document outlining what medical actions can be taken if the individual is no longer able to make decisions for themselves due to illness or incapacity.
Probate
A financial power of attorney, or a POA, is a document that gives an appointed individual the authority to act on another’s behalf in financial matters.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Healthcare power of attorney, or an HCOA, is a document that gives an appointed individual the authority to act on another’s behalf in medical care decisions.
Financial Power of Attorney
A financial power of attorney, or a POA, is a document that gives an appointed individual the authority to act on another’s behalf in financial matters.
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