Evan Ficaj Law Firm

Estate Planning Attorney in Livonia, Michigan

Evan Ficaj Law Firm is a Livonia-based practice serving individuals, entrepreneurs, and business owners in estate planning and a range of business and transactional matters. Attorney Evan Ficaj's broader practice includes business and corporate law, LLC formation, contracts, mergers and acquisitions, finance, and entertainment law, giving his estate-planning work a particular connection to clients whose personal wealth may include ownership of a business or other closely held interests.

The firm's estate-planning services extend beyond deciding who receives property after death. Ficaj helps clients consider what would happen if an accident or illness left them unable to manage their own affairs, who would care for minor children, how beneficiaries should receive an inheritance, and whether trusts or other planning arrangements are appropriate for their circumstances.

Why a Will May Be Only One Part of the Plan

Preparing a will is an important step for many families, but a will does not address every estate-planning concern. Ficaj specifically explains that having a will does not, by itself, avoid probate. A will also generally addresses what happens at death rather than establishing who can manage financial or healthcare decisions if someone becomes incapacitated during life.

Ficaj's estate-planning work therefore includes trusts, durable powers of attorney, healthcare directives, and other documents in addition to wills. The appropriate combination depends on what the client needs the plan to accomplish.

For some families, the primary concern may be establishing straightforward instructions for property after death. Others may want to address incapacity, provide greater control over an inheritance, reduce the amount of property that would require probate administration, or plan for assets that are more complicated than ordinary personal property.

Deciding Who Would Care for Your Children

Parents do not need to have substantial wealth for estate planning to matter. For families with minor children, one of the most consequential questions is who should take responsibility for them if both parents die.

An estate plan can allow parents to nominate a guardian to care for their minor children while separately addressing who should manage property on a child's behalf. These are different responsibilities, and families may have different people in mind for each role.

Making those choices in advance allows parents to express whom they trust with the care of their children and the management of property intended for them. A broader estate plan can also address how an inheritance should be held or distributed while children are still too young to manage substantial assets themselves.

What Happens If an Accident or Illness Leaves You Incapacitated?

Estate planning is also preparation for circumstances in which someone is alive but unable to make decisions independently. A serious accident, illness, disability, or cognitive impairment can suddenly leave family members trying to determine who has authority to manage finances or make healthcare decisions.

Ficaj prepares durable powers of attorney that allow clients to designate someone to handle financial and property matters under specified circumstances. His healthcare planning services include advance directives and patient advocate designations for decisions involving medical care.

The firm's estate-planning materials also address HIPAA authorizations, living wills, DNR orders, nonopioid directives, and instructions concerning final disposition. These documents address different decisions, allowing clients to consider in advance who should act for them and what wishes they want documented.

Advance planning may also reduce the likelihood that relatives will later need to seek a guardianship through probate court simply to obtain authority to make necessary decisions.

When You Don't Want an Inheritance Distributed All at Once

Some people are comfortable leaving property directly to beneficiaries. Others have reasons for wanting greater control over when and how an inheritance becomes available.

A beneficiary might be young, inexperienced with money, or facing circumstances that make an immediate distribution undesirable. Families may also want assets managed over time rather than transferred outright after a death.

Ficaj's estate-planning practice includes revocable and irrevocable trusts. Depending on the type of trust and the client's objectives, a trust can provide instructions for managing and distributing property, establish continuing management following incapacity, and hold assets such as real estate, financial accounts, or business interests.

Trust planning can also provide greater privacy and reduce the amount of property that must pass through probate when assets have been properly incorporated into the plan.

When the Estate Includes a Business

An estate can become considerably more complicated when a significant portion of someone's wealth is tied to an LLC or another closely held business. Ownership interests may need to be coordinated with the owner's personal estate plan rather than treated like an ordinary bank account or piece of household property.

This is an area where Ficaj's broader professional focus is particularly relevant. In addition to estate planning, his practice includes LLCs, corporate and business law, contracts, financing, mergers and acquisitions, and other transactional matters. His estate-planning materials also identify family LLCs among the structures that may be considered in appropriate circumstances.

For an entrepreneur or business owner, this combination allows estate-planning decisions to be considered alongside the legal structure and ownership of the business itself.

Considering Creditor and Asset-Protection Concerns

Ficaj also addresses potential lawsuits and creditor claims among the risks that may factor into estate planning. His materials discuss irrevocable trusts in connection with more advanced objectives that can include asset protection, tax planning, and planning for beneficiaries with special needs.

These strategies are not necessary for every family, and irrevocable arrangements involve different considerations from an ordinary revocable living trust. Their inclusion in Ficaj's practice, however, allows planning to extend beyond basic wills when a client's assets, beneficiaries, or potential liabilities call for a more specialized approach.

An Estate Plan Built Around Different Stages of Life

Estate-planning priorities can change considerably over time. Younger parents may be most concerned about guardians for their children. A business owner may need to consider what happens to ownership interests. Later in life, incapacity and healthcare decisions may become more immediate concerns.

Ficaj's estate-planning practice addresses these different circumstances through wills, trusts, financial and healthcare powers, beneficiary and property planning, and other advance directives. The objective is not simply to prepare documents for use after death, but to establish arrangements for the situations a client wants to anticipate during life as well.

Serving Livonia and Southeast Michigan

Evan Ficaj Law Firm is based on Middlebelt Road in Livonia. From this office, Ficaj provides estate-planning and business legal services to clients in Livonia and the surrounding Southeast Michigan area.

For business owners and other individuals whose estate-planning needs overlap with corporate or transactional concerns, the firm's combination of estate and business services provides a framework for considering personal planning alongside the ownership and structure of business assets.

Practice Areas

• Estate Planning

• Wills

• Revocable Trusts

• Irrevocable Trusts

• Family LLCs

• Durable Powers of Attorney

• Advance Healthcare Directives

• Patient Advocate Designations

• Living Wills

• HIPAA Authorizations

• Special Needs Planning

• Asset Protection Planning

• Business and Corporate Law

• LLC Formation

• Business Transactions