Harris & Literski

Estate Planning & Probate Attorneys in Brighton, Michigan

Estate planning often begins with straightforward but important family questions. Who should receive your property? Who would care for your children if both parents died? Who could pay your bills or make healthcare decisions if an accident or illness left you unable to act for yourself? And what will your family actually have to do after your death?

Harris & Literski helps Brighton-area clients address these questions through wills, trusts, powers of attorney and other estate-planning services. The firm also assists with matters that arise after a death, including probate and trust administration and disputes involving wills and trusts.

Harris & Literski has served Livingston County since 1985. Within the firm's broader practice, attorney John K. Harris handles estate planning and litigation, while Matthew J. Harris also includes estate planning among his practice areas.

Making a Plan for Minor Children

For parents of young children, an estate plan is about much more than distributing money or property.

One of the most consequential decisions parents can address is whom they would want to care for their children if neither parent were available. Harris & Literski specifically identifies choosing a guardian for minor children as an important reason for parents to prepare an estate plan.

Without advance planning, surviving family members may be left to deal with questions the parents never formally answered. A will provides parents with an opportunity to document their wishes rather than leaving those decisions entirely unresolved.

Parents can also consider how property intended for their children should be handled. Estate planning allows a family to think ahead about both the people who will care for children and the financial resources being left for their benefit.

Preparing for an Unexpected Incapacity

Death is not the only event an estate plan should address. A serious accident or illness can leave someone alive but unable to manage ordinary financial or healthcare decisions.

Harris & Literski assists clients with documents establishing authority for other people to act when necessary. Financial powers of attorney can address practical matters such as managing accounts and paying bills when the person who normally handles them is unable to do so. Healthcare planning can identify someone authorized to participate in medical decision-making.

These issues can affect adults of any age. Someone who is temporarily incapacitated after an accident may need another person to handle financial responsibilities just as an older adult experiencing declining capacity might.

Making those choices beforehand can provide clearer authority during a period when family members may already be dealing with a medical crisis.

Deciding Whether a Will or Trust Fits the Family

Not every family needs the same estate-planning structure.

Harris & Literski assists clients with wills and trusts and provides guidance about differences between the two. A will can establish how property should be distributed after death and address issues such as the selection of guardians for minor children.

Trusts can serve different purposes. Depending on how a plan is structured, a trust may provide continued management of assets, greater privacy and an opportunity to keep properly transferred assets outside the probate process. Trust planning can also address the management of property during incapacity.

The distinction matters because simply having estate-planning documents does not necessarily mean every asset will be handled in the same way. How property is owned and whether it has actually been transferred to a trust can affect what happens after a death.

Rather than assuming that everyone needs a trust—or that a simple will is sufficient for every family—the appropriate choice depends on the client's circumstances and objectives.

What Happens When Probate Is Necessary?

After someone dies, family members may discover that some or all of the deceased person's property must be administered through Michigan probate proceedings.

Probate generally involves the appointment of a personal representative who becomes responsible for handling the estate. That process can include identifying estate property, addressing debts and ultimately distributing assets to the appropriate beneficiaries or heirs.

For a person who has never served as a personal representative, the responsibility can be unfamiliar. The individual may be grieving while simultaneously trying to determine what legal steps need to be taken and what obligations come with the position.

Harris & Literski assists clients with probate matters and the administration of estates after a death.

When Property Was Supposed to Be in a Trust

Trust administration differs from probate administration, but the existence of a trust does not automatically mean that every asset will avoid probate.

Property generally must be properly connected to the trust for the trust to control it. Harris & Literski's estate materials address situations in which property was not transferred into a trust as intended.

That can create an unpleasant surprise for surviving family members who believed the estate plan would eliminate the need for probate.

After a death, trustees may also have responsibilities associated with administering the trust and distributing its property according to its terms. Understanding the distinction between probate property and trust property can therefore be important both while creating an estate plan and when administering it later.

When Someone Dies Without a Will

Families can also face difficulties when a person dies without creating an estate plan at all.

In Michigan, dying without a valid will means the state's intestacy laws determine who inherits probate property. The result is based on the relationships recognized under those laws rather than on unwritten wishes or assumptions among family members.

This can matter when a person's actual family circumstances do not fit neatly with what relatives expect to happen. It can also leave survivors dealing with an estate administration process without the guidance that a properly prepared will could have provided.

Harris & Literski advises families on probate and estate matters when a loved one dies without a will as well as when an estate plan is already in place.

When an Inheritance Leads to a Family Dispute

Not every estate or trust administration proceeds peacefully.

Relatives or beneficiaries may disagree over the validity or interpretation of a will or trust, the administration of property or other issues affecting an inheritance. Disputes of this kind can become particularly difficult because the legal disagreement is often occurring within a family already dealing with a death.

This is an area where Harris & Literski's broader litigation experience is especially relevant. The firm handles disputes involving wills and trusts and works toward practical resolutions when possible while also having litigation experience when contested matters require court involvement.

John K. Harris's practice combines estate planning with litigation and mediation and arbitration work. That combination can be useful when an estate-related disagreement requires more than routine document preparation or administration.

Decades of Legal Practice in Livingston County

Harris & Literski has served Livingston County from Brighton since 1985. The firm's estate work is part of a broader legal practice that also includes litigation, family law, business matters, real estate and other areas.

For estate-planning clients, the firm's services address both sides of the process: making decisions before a crisis or death occurs and dealing with legal responsibilities or disagreements afterward.

That can mean helping parents decide who should care for their children, preparing documents for an unexpected incapacity, choosing between a will and trust, guiding a family through probate, or representing clients when an inheritance becomes the subject of a dispute.

Practice Areas

• Estate Planning

• Wills

• Trusts

• Powers of Attorney

• Healthcare Planning

• Probate

• Estate Administration

• Trust Administration

• Will Disputes

• Trust Disputes

• Estate Planning Litigation