“Always plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.” – Richard Cushing
Why should you take the time to plan? Though we may not want to face it, we all pass away at some point. Planning ahead, undoubtedly, takes time to organize your financial affairs and is emotionally taxing. The tradeoff is you can use this time, working with your professional estate planning team, to efficiently consider your decisions versus the risks of others making your decisions for you. Estate planning involves more than simply preparing for the inevitable. Individually, we all have our own questions and unique considerations. For example:
- Who do you want to make financial or medical decisions for you in the event you are terminally ill or injured?
- Will your family be financially cared for if you were to pass away?
- Do you have an explicit succession plan in place for your family business?
It safeguards your needs to be appropriately cared for, provides personal peace of mind, and establishes your final written wishes and intentions. Essentially, you are communicating for the ultimate efficient distribution of your assets to those important to you.
On behalf of the Palm Beach County Estate Planning Council and our members, thank you for taking your time to read the articles in this 24th annual edition of the Estate Planning Supplement written by our members. Consider us as another valuable resource. You are welcome to reach out to our authors with questions you may have. For further assistance, consultative advice, and guidance to help you and your family’s estate planning needs, we encourage you to visit our 200+ multi-disciplined estate planning professional members found on our website www.pbcepc.org and at the end of this Supplement.
To you and your family from our Estate Planning family, we warmly wish you a successful, happy and healthy New Year 2023.
Syndie T. Levien
President, Palm Beach County Estate Planning Council