Practice Areas
Estate Planning Attorney Pittsburgh
When it comes to estate planning, the primary goal is to ensure your financial well-being is preserved during your lifetime and your wishes are carried out in accord with your intent after your incapacitation or passing. The decisions that need to be made can feel overwhelming when you are confronted with all of the moving parts necessary to provide the most benefit to your family and loved ones in the event of your death. Very Law is here to help you through this.
We believe that wanting to help people is the most important aspect of being an attorney and have built our law firm practice to reflect that. The estate planning attorneys at Very Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania address the needs of you and your family through asking questions and guiding your estate plan to reflect your goals. Our clients’ goals are our top priority, whether your goal is minimizing tax liability, avoiding probate, the transition of a business, charitable giving, or any other goal you want when it comes to your assets.
Very Law wants to help you reach your estate planning goals. If you are looking for a Pittsburgh law firm that got into this profession to help people, then you’ve come to the right place. Very Law is here to help you!
Services Offered by Estate Planning Attorneys
Very Law understands that we need to specialize in a whole range of services when working to protect the assets of our clients and helping them plan for their future. These are some areas in which we have experience helping the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania community:
Wills and Trusts:
Wills and trusts are the bread and butter legal issues of estate planning. Wills are legal documents that specify the distribution of your property and assets in the event of your death. Whereas, trusts are a legal and financial tool meant to help manage and protect your assets by having a trustee you select to oversee the assets according to the terms you define.
We assist in drafting these documents to ensure all the assets that you have worked for are distributed according to your wishes. If you don’t have a will or trust, the laws of the state of Pennsylvania will be making the decisions on your behalf.
Probate and Estate Administration:
After a will or trust has been drafted properly and there are assets that need to be distributed involved, there will be probate on your passing. A probate is a process that verifies the legitimacy of a person’s will. Probate assets are such things as money and property, whereas non-probate assets are items such as retirement plans and life insurance plans that already have designated beneficiaries. Beneficiaries being any individuals or entities designated to receive assets or benefits from a person’s will, trust, or other agreement.
A Very Law estate planning attorney based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania will preside over the probate process. We will validate your will and distribute your assets how you deem fit. Our professional attorneys will help guide your beneficiaries through this challenging and complicated process.
Elder Law:
Very Law attorneys specializing in elder law know what concerns our seniors have when it comes to their specific legal issues. We discuss all concerns they or their families may have. We assist in preparing documents or providing other elder law services like powers of attorney (a legal document granting one person the authority to act on the behalf of another person), estate planning (management and protection of a person’s assets in live and death), advice on long-term care planning, and assisting with Medicaid or Medicare issues.
Tax Planning:
Our estate planning attorneys work with you to decide the best options forward when discussing concerns dealing with estate tax (a tax imposed on the transfer of an estate) and gift taxes (a tax on the transfer of assets when there is nothing of value reciprocated). Our experienced advice can help you feel that your affairs are in order when it comes tax season every year during your living trust or other estate planning services.
Asset Protection:
The attorneys of our Pittsburgh law office that focus on asset protection provide advice on how to best safeguard from a number of risks, including divorce, lawsuits, or potential creditor claims. Very Law works to mitigate these issues through your estate planning.
Business Succession Planning:
Many people who work with our talented estate planning lawyers own Pennsylvania businesses as part of their estate. We are concerned with making the transfer of control and ownership of your business to the individuals you believe in as smoothly as possible, without dispute or disruption.
Special Needs Planning:
Families with an individual that has special needs have specific planning that must be considered. Very Law attorneys understand how crucial preserving any government benefit eligibility they might have is and work with you to ensure their financial security.
Charitable Giving:
As attorneys whose focus is helping people, we enjoy assisting our clientele who have philanthropic goals. We are able to develop charitable giving strategies with you, using such tools as charitable trusts or foundations.
Living Trusts:
A living trust, also referred to as a revocable trust, is a tool that is utilized to make your asset distribution as flawless as possible. This legal arrangement allows the transfer of ownership of assets to a trust, but managed by a trustee, during your lifetime. The living trust option would avoid probate after your passing, if that is something you are concerned about.
Estate Litigation:
Although this is an area of our services that we prefer to avoid if possible, it is sometimes unavoidable and we must take proceedings to court. Very Law law firm and our attorneys will fight diligently and be an aggressive advocate for your decisions. Powers of attorney, families, or other lawyers may question the validity of a will or trust and may attempt to prove such in court. We address your concerns and fight to protect your interests, even after your death.
Estate Administration and Estate Planning Attorney Pittsburgh
Very Law PA attorneys are able to practice anywhere in Pennsylvania. We are great attorneys in our areas of expertise, such as elder law services, estate administration, powers of attorney, wills, or any other area of legal issues. Our law firm is composed of all types of attorneys for every issue in estate planning and every aspect of elder law, but this is not solely what we pride ourselves on.
We pride ourselves on how well our firm helps people. From the advice that we give to the care we put into your affairs, our Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania lawyers at Very Law will listen to all of your concerns and pay attention to what really matters to you.
The decisions that you make for your family using tools like wills or other estate planning options will affect your legacy. We can’t stress enough how many of our services are based on listening to you and helping you with the best professional advice we are able to provide. If you need lawyers who listen to you and your family, contact us today to discuss your legal needs!