Estate Planning

Peterson Goodman & Hawkins PLC provides clients in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia with estate planning services. Our Estate Planning Practice is dedicated to assisting our clients with the development and implementation of an estate plan tailored to their unique individual needs. We will help you plan for the future by addressing the avoidance of probate, the establishment of trusts for minor children and planning for incapacity.

Before choosing the appropriate plan, we closely assess your financial situation and explain the advantages and disadvantages of various estate planning tools, including tax implications.

Contact our estate planning lawyers  if you have questions or need assistance.

Estate planning services

We assist clients with many types of estate planning options:

• Wills
• Revocable and irrevocable trusts
• Estate tax planning
• Business Succession planning
• Advance medical directives & living wills
• Powers of attorney
• Life insurance trusts
• Children’s trusts
• Charitable giving

Advising you on estate taxes

People who wish to distribute their assets usually want to maximize the value of what is being transferred by minimizing the taxes. When you are creating your estate plan, we will advise you how to minimize or avoid taxes through the use of trusts, family limited partnerships, and charitable giving.

Use of Revocable Trusts

A revocable living trust is established during your lifetime to hold title to your assets, including your real property. It is similar to a will in that it contains instructions for how want your assets to be handled at your death. However, unlike with a will, assets paid to a revocable living trust or owned by a revocable living trust are not subject to probate, which avoids the need for a court-appointed guardian or conservator to manage your financial affairs if you become incapacitated. A revocable living trust does not become a public record upon your death, and it is also generally more difficult to contest than a will.

In addition to estate planning, Peterson Goodman & Hawkins PLC handles estate administration and fiduciary litigation. Also, if you are planning to get married, we can prepare a prenuptial agreement for you. In many ways, prenuptial agreements are similar to estate plans in that they exist as a form of insurance against situations that could arise in the future and provide assurance that your assets will be protected.