Riley, Illinois

Estate Planning Attorneys

There’s a common misconception that only wealthy people need an estate plan, since the uber-wealthy typically have the “most” in terms of fancy or expensive assets.

The reality is that we all need an estate plan – a specific set of guidelines that lays out what should happen to our things and our loved ones after our death.

Making note of those wishes and organizing them into a concrete plan is estate planning. It will give you peace of mind knowing that your family will be taken care of, no matter what happens in the future – including the unexpected.

Diamond Estate Planning lawyers of Riley, Illinois are here to help.

Click to schedule a free consultation

Why Do I Need an Estate Plan?

You probably want a say in what happens to your things after you die.

You want to decide who will receive all these assets, what exactly they should receive, and when they should receive it.

That’s where estate planning comes in. Estate planning is the process of creating a way for your loved ones to deal with everything after you die or become incapacitated.

At Diamond Estate Planning, we’ve been helping families throughout Illinois make sure their kids, property, and legacy go to the loved ones they want – and we’ve been doing it for decades.

What does Diamond Estate Planning Law include in an estate plan?

Depending on your specific needs, when you create an estate plan with our team, it could include any or all of the following:

Your last will and testament
Your Powers of Attorney
Any Special Deeds (concerning the property or properties you own)
Your Advanced Directions (which detail your wishes concerning medical care)
Your beneficiaries and shared account holders
And more

Below, we’ll outline the details of some of these important elements of your estate plan.

Riley, Illinois Estate Planning Services

At Diamond Estate Planning, we take the time to understand your unique situation and guide you through the process, every step of the way. Our services include:

Advance Directive, also known as a Living Will

A living will is a document that tells your healthcare provider (or hospital) your end-of-life medical care if you become unable to communicate. For example, a living will clarifies whether you want to be on life support, etc.

Asset Protection

A good estate plan and organizing everything in a good trust can protect assets from family disputes.

Estate Planning Resources For Professionals

As a professional, you have a lot of personal exposure because of the possibility of malpractice claims. For many professional licenses, you can never get rid of your liability for negligence or malpractice. If you have a claim that is either declined by your professional malpractice insurance or that exceeds the limits, a good estate plan can protect your assets. Things like a land trust with a bank or title company can keep your name out of the public records for your home.

Trusts

We create trusts that avoid probate (the process of your family going to court after you die). Our trusts clearly explain your wishes to your family and set up protections for minor children and family members on government assistance. Trusts can also direct your family to make charitable donations to causes you care about. Additionally, a trust can make sure specific items (like your grandmother’s wedding ring, a Gutenberg bible, your grandfather’s flag, the vintage Mustang) go to who you want to have them. A trust can spell out your wishes regarding who you want to take care of your children, and even your wishes for your pets. (Because we want to help you make sure Rover still gets his rubber Wall Street Journal every morning!)

Find out more

Wills

Wills spell out your wishes to your family. Like trusts, wills can make clear who you want to inherit what, as well as explaining your wishes for your children and your pets. Unlike trusts, however, your family still has to go to court after you die to access your money and distribute your property the way you wanted them to. Your will also becomes public record, whereas a trust does not.

Find out more

Wealth Preservation

Diamond Estate Planning can help with wealth preservation by making sure that when someone dies or becomes disabled, proper contingencies are in place. That way, you can control what will happen to your wealth and avoid possible loss or unnecessary legal expenses.

Power of Attorneys (POAs)

A power of attorney designates a person you trust to make health care or financial decisions for you if you can’t do them yourself. You also designate additional, backup people to step in if you first choice is unavailable. There are multiple types of POAs.

Health Care Power of Attorney: Spells out your wishes for your medical care, and end-of-life wishes in particular.
Power of Attorney for Property: Designates a person or people who can take care of your possessions, financial affairs, and real estate for you, if needed. This avoids needing a guardianship if you are temporarily incapacitated or disabled. Your power of attorney can conduct your affairs for you (write checks, pay bills, buy or sell real estate, etc.)

It’s important to note that these arrangements only work when you are alive. If you are your grandmother’s power of attorney and she passes away, you cannot do anything with her property (bank accounts, investment accounts and real estate) without either probating an estate or using a trust that she set up when she was alive.

Find out more

Health care power of attorney for minor children

Parents can set up a health care power of attorney for their children, giving someone other than themselves permission to take the child to the doctor or emergency room. One example could be if you are out of town for a long weekend or a long vacation without your child, or if your child is with a babysitter and you cannot get to the hospital or doctor to get them prompt treatment.

Why Diamond Estate Planning is different

At Diamond Estate Planning, we help you create an estate plan that works for you now and will grow with you as your family and estate grow.

Our estate planning team has kids (and grandkids!) of our own, so we know how important they are, as well as how hard it is to plan for everything. We don’t want to make you feel anxious about the future. Instead, when you finish signing your documents, you’ll feel good about the plan you’ve put into place.

And we understand that the majority of our clients are not excited to think about dying, but we also know how important it is for you to do this for your children. That’s why we try to make the process as painless and as streamlined as possible.

We have a wide network of attorneys with a wide variety of knowledge, which is why the work that we do for you will even help prepare you for the unexpected. We take a team approach to make sure that all the details are correct, ensuring that multiple people understand your file and your needs so you don’t end up waiting endlessly for one attorney who’s stuck in court to call you back.