Why Is It Important to Have a Will?

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Having a will is essential to manage your estate after your death, as well as provide for your children and family members. While survivors and heirs can go through procedures to manage assets without a will, having a last will and testament makes this much easier. However, as attorney Michael Convery explains in this video, many people do not see the need for a will as they age. Nevertheless, as he says, estate planning is vital.

Video Transcription

I feel that estate planning is really at the cutting edge of the law these days. There’s a very high incidence of the baby boomer generation getting older and, as that occurs, there’s a need for wills and for trusts. Most people, at least in the demographic age that I’m in, don’t have wills. I speak to a lot of clients that don’t even understand the need for a will or the need for a trust, and it’s something that’s necessary. I also handle other documents that are very important—powers of attorney and advanced medical care directives—that today are very important. Wills are for everybody that has property. Wills really direct the conduct of your estate upon death. Also, contained within a will would be some direction if you did have children and how estates can be apportioned to your children at the time of your death. There’s also provisions under a last will and testament that would appoint guardianships for your children, if they were not the age of majority. There’s also, under a will, the appointment of an executor or representative of your estate that would handle your affairs upon death. So, if you were in New Jersey and you died without a will, then these things are not addressed. An application would have to be made for administration with the surrogate’s office in the county that you reside in. And it just makes it more complex if you have to apply for administration of a decedent’s estate versus having a will to direct how you want the matter to be resolved. Here at the Keefe Law Firm, we stand for you. Call now to get the help you need at (866) 575-5000. Visit us at www.Keefe-LawFirm.com.