For New Clients
The Three P's of Estate Planning
Estate Planning Protocol
Thank you for selecting the South Carolina law firm, Ruff & Ruff, to assist you. Our Estate Planning Protocol is a four-step process, as follows:
Step 1: Confidential Client Questionnaire
Once your initial appointment is scheduled, you will receive our Confidential Client Questionnaire (hereinafter, the “CCQ”) either in the U.S. mail or as an email attachment.
Alternatively, you may download the CCQ directly from this website via the link below. Please return the CCQ at least two days before your initial appointment.
Step 2: Initial Appointment
Expect to receive a courtesy phone call reminder from our office the business day before your initial appointment. If you need to reschedule your appointment, please contact us
immediately so that we may open your scheduled appointment time and date to our other clients.
During our initial appointment, we will listen to your needs, plans and goals. We will give you our opinion regarding (1) whether we may be able to assist you, (2) the planning
alternatives we would recommend to meet your objectives, and (3) the fees associated for the various planning alternatives. We will provide specific, personal legal advice unique to
your objectives, to include a detailed explanation and diagram of your various planning alternatives.
If you choose to retain our services, then we would sign an agreement detailing the services to be provided and the fees. We would then schedule a mutually convenient time and date
to review and sign your legal documents.
Step 3: Review and Signing
Your follow-up appointment to review and sign your legal documents, and to begin implementation of the plan, will be scheduled at the end of your initial appointment – normally for
within 2-6 weeks. This appointment may be quite lengthy as we will thoroughly explain the planning documents to you, and to your family members if desired. We also will explain the
process for making advisable asset transfers or beneficiary designation changes, whether or not you choose to engage our firm in that process.
Typically, clients are happy with their original planning decisions, and therefore all legal documents are signed at this follow-up meeting. However, sometimes we find that, after
our comprehensive review, clients want to make some minor changes. Often we can take care of these changes immediately. We ask that if you decide on changes before the date of the
follow-up meeting, that you contact us as soon as possible to discuss these changes, so that if possible we can have the changes ready for the follow-up meeting.
After we copy and scan signed legal documents for our records, we provide all documents in a high quality, easy to manage, 3-ring bound “Estate Planning Portfolio.”
Step 4: Periodic Review and Maintenance
Each of our clients receives a follow-up letter after their planning is complete and a continued subscription to Ruff & Ruff eNewsletter, our online estate planning newsletter. Through the
newsletter, we help keep our clients informed of changes that could affect their planning, and we help them maintain an awareness of their estate planning goals.
Estate Planning is a lifetime process, not simply an after-death distribution program. So, it makes sense to periodically review your planning goals and legal documents as
circumstances in your life change. Because of many different life changes and activities, we strongly recommend that we meet at least once every two years to review your plan.
While it would be helpful, there is no need to go on a "treasure hunt" at this point for financial or legal documents, stock certificates or insurance policies. Sometimes we find
clients procrastinate in getting their planning done because they cannot locate, or do not have time to locate, all of these documents. Truthfully, these documents will not be needed
until later in the process. Instead, spend the time before your appointment contemplating the Three P's of Estate Planning.
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#1 -- People
Who are the Important People in your life?
Beginning with yourself, they also likely include your loved ones: your spouse if you are married, children and grandchildren if you have any, perhaps your parents, siblings or other
relatives. Beyond these, however, "Important People" also could include charities, special causes, colleges or universities, or churches to which you are committed. For some,
"Important People" could even include pets. Spend some time thinking about the impact others have had on your life. Make a list and jot notes if you like. This is where the planning
process truly begins.
#2 -- Property
By Property we mean your assets in general.
Make a list of the assets you own or control. At this point, you do not need to identify insurance policy numbers and exact dollar values. Rather think through your assets in terms
of their nature (cash, stocks, bonds, real estate, etc.); their value in thousands of dollars; and your ownership interest: Do you own assets in your name only, in joint tenancy with
someone else, or through a trust agreement or some other arrangement? Be sure to include often-overlooked assets like life insurance (the death benefit, not the cash value), business
interests, and any inheritance you may expect to receive.
#3 -- Plans
After identifying the Important People in your life and your Property, the next step is to consider the plans you would like to make.
- Do you know exactly what would happen to your family if you did not wake up tomorrow?
- Do you know exactly what would happen to your family if you became disabled?
- Who will you need to, or just want to help, educate? When? And do you have your arms around what it will cost?
- How and when do you see yourself retiring? What will you do, and what will it cost to do it – not just the day after you retire, but 10, 20 and even 30 years later?
- Are your parents living, and if so will you be expected to contribute to their support at some point? And have you made any provision for the possibility that you may need nursing
home or other care, late in your own life?
- How important is it to you to be able to help your children and grandchildren financially – while you are still here, as legacies, or both? How do you plan to do it?
- Is there an institution that you care deeply about – a church, charity or school, for example – to which you would wish to leave a meaningful legacy, assuming we could create a
highly tax-efficient way for you to do so?
- Assuming, as we have to do, that when you are gone, part of your estate will get taxed away, how do you want the tax to be paid? If you want the children to just pay the tax,
might they be forced to sell something you really would not want them to have to sell?
These are just a few of the issues to consider when approaching the planning process. They are much more important than the "treasure hunt" for legal documents at this stage.
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