Law Offices of Miller & Miller

Estate Planning, Probate & Elder Law Attorneys in Allen Park, Michigan

A useful estate plan needs to account for more than who receives property after someone dies. Parents may need to decide who could care for minor children. A homeowner may want a house to pass without probate. Someone approaching retirement may be concerned about incapacity or long-term care. And after a death, the person responsible for the estate may face an unfamiliar probate process before beneficiaries can receive their inheritances.

The Law Offices of Miller & Miller, P.C. addresses these and other concerns through estate planning, probate, elder law, guardianships, conservatorships, and real estate services. The firm's Michigan office is located in Allen Park, and the father-and-son practice was established in 1994.

Its estate planning work includes wills, trusts, powers of attorney, beneficiary planning, and strategies intended to keep appropriate assets outside probate. For families dealing with incapacity or the needs of an older relative, the practice also includes elder law and probate court proceedings involving guardianships and conservatorships.

When Parents Need to Plan for Minor Children

For parents, an estate plan has implications beyond deciding who receives financial assets.

Miller & Miller's estate planning work addresses the decisions parents face if they die while their children are still minors. The firm discusses naming people to care for children and selecting backups in case a parent's first choice is unable to serve.

Financial arrangements can require separate planning. Leaving property outright to a young child does not answer the question of who will manage that property while the child is still too young to do so independently. Trusts can provide instructions for managing an inheritance for a child's benefit and allow parents to establish how those assets should be handled.

The firm's planning for parents also addresses incapacity. An accident or illness can leave a parent temporarily or permanently unable to manage finances or make other decisions even though the parent is still alive. Powers of attorney can therefore be an important part of planning for families with children.

What Happens When Someone Dies Without a Will

When a Michigan resident dies without a valid will, the person has lost the opportunity to use that document to direct how probate property should be distributed.

Miller & Miller advises clients on wills as part of its estate planning practice and specifically discusses the consequences of intestacy. Without a valid will, Michigan's intestate succession rules determine who inherits property subject to those rules.

This can matter when someone's assumptions about inheritance do not necessarily match the legal result. Marriage, children, other relatives, and the way property is owned can all affect what happens after death.

Preparing an estate plan while those choices can still be made allows an individual to put intentions into legal documents rather than leaving distribution entirely to default rules.

Keeping an Estate Out of Probate When Possible

Having a will and avoiding probate are not the same thing.

Miller & Miller specifically emphasizes probate-avoidance planning and identifies several methods through which property may pass outside probate. Depending on the circumstances, those methods can include living trusts, joint ownership with survivorship rights, beneficiary designations, and Lady Bird deeds.

The details matter because different assets can pass in different ways. A retirement account or life insurance policy may have a beneficiary designation. Jointly owned property may pass according to the form of ownership. Property transferred into a properly established trust can be governed by the trust.

The firm's approach therefore looks beyond simply preparing a will and considers how assets are actually owned and how they are intended to pass at death.

When an Asset Was Never Properly Included in the Plan

Even someone who has already established a trust can leave behind probate problems if the plan and ownership of the assets do not line up.

Miller & Miller notes that an account or other asset that was supposed to avoid probate may still end up there if it was not properly titled or otherwise incorporated into the intended arrangement.

That distinction can be easy to overlook. Signing trust documents does not by itself establish how every piece of property will pass. The ownership and beneficiary arrangements associated with individual assets also matter.

For someone reviewing an older estate plan, this creates a practical reason to look at more than the documents themselves. Changes in accounts, property ownership, family circumstances, or beneficiary arrangements may affect whether the existing plan still accomplishes its intended purpose.

Passing a Michigan Home With a Lady Bird Deed

For many families, a home is one of the most valuable assets that must be addressed in an estate plan.

Miller & Miller prepares Lady Bird deeds as part of its Michigan practice. This type of deed can allow a property owner to retain control of real estate during life while providing for the property to transfer to designated beneficiaries after death without going through probate.

Retaining lifetime control is an important part of the arrangement. The firm's explanation of Lady Bird deeds notes that the owner can continue to sell or mortgage the property and can change beneficiaries without obtaining the beneficiaries' consent.

That can make a Lady Bird deed worth considering for a homeowner who wants to arrange for a future transfer without giving up present control of the property. The firm also addresses Lady Bird deeds in connection with Medicaid and estate planning.

When an Aging Parent Can No Longer Make Personal Decisions

Families sometimes confront incapacity only after an older relative's ability to make decisions has already deteriorated.

Miller & Miller handles Michigan guardianship proceedings involving vulnerable adults who cannot adequately make decisions for themselves because of incapacity. The firm's materials discuss circumstances involving dementia, Alzheimer's disease, developmental disabilities, serious illnesses, injuries, and other conditions affecting decision-making.

A guardian can be given responsibility for personal matters such as care, medical treatment, and living arrangements. Depending on the individual's abilities and needs, a court may establish broader or more limited authority.

The firm also handles temporary guardianships when circumstances create an immediate need for someone to make decisions before a longer-term arrangement can be determined.

When the Problem Is Managing a Loved One's Money

A family may face a somewhat different problem when a relative cannot adequately manage income, bills, investments, property, or other financial affairs.

Miller & Miller represents clients in conservatorship matters. A conservator can be appointed by a probate court to manage finances for someone who is unable to do so independently because of incapacity or physical limitations.

The firm's Michigan conservatorship materials address both general and limited conservatorships. Someone who is unable to manage any significant financial matters may require broad assistance, while another person may still be capable of handling everyday spending but need help with more complicated financial responsibilities.

Once appointed, a conservator can have significant ongoing duties, including managing assets, paying expenses, protecting property, maintaining financial records, and reporting to the probate court.

Planning Before Guardianship or Conservatorship Becomes Necessary

Guardianship and conservatorship are court proceedings that may become necessary after someone can no longer make certain decisions independently. Advance planning can sometimes provide alternatives before that point is reached.

Miller & Miller's estate and elder law services include powers of attorney and other planning related to incapacity. A durable financial power of attorney can allow someone to designate another person to act concerning financial matters if assistance becomes necessary.

Healthcare planning can likewise establish decision-making arrangements before a medical crisis occurs.

The difference in timing can be significant. Advance documents are created while a person is able to make his or her own choices about who should have authority. Guardianships and conservatorships generally involve a probate court deciding whether intervention is necessary after capacity has become an issue.

Settling an Estate After a Parent or Relative Dies

Even with planning, some estates require probate.

Miller & Miller represents clients through the Michigan probate process after a death. Probate can involve determining what property belongs to the estate, addressing obligations of the deceased person, complying with court procedures, and eventually distributing property to the appropriate beneficiaries or heirs.

The person taking responsibility for an estate may have little previous experience with any of those duties. At the same time, beneficiaries may be waiting for property that cannot necessarily be distributed immediately.

The firm also points out that probate can become more involved when an estate includes multiple properties, investments, business interests, or other complications. Property located outside Michigan can create additional proceedings in the state where that property is located.

When Probate Delays an Inheritance

One reason Miller & Miller emphasizes probate planning is that assets passing through probate generally cannot simply be distributed immediately after death.

Administration has to occur before the estate can be completed. That can matter to beneficiaries who expected quick access to inherited property or funds.

The firm identifies living trusts, beneficiary designations, joint ownership arrangements, and Lady Bird deeds among the methods that may allow particular assets to pass outside probate when they are properly established.

Not every estate can or should be structured identically. But considering how individual assets will transfer can help a person understand which property may require probate and which property has another mechanism for passing to its intended recipient.

Estate Planning as Family and Financial Circumstances Change

An estate plan is based on circumstances that may not remain the same indefinitely.

People marry or divorce, children are born, property is bought or sold, beneficiaries change, and financial accounts are opened or closed. Someone who created an estate plan years earlier may therefore have documents and asset arrangements that no longer reflect the current family or financial picture.

Miller & Miller assists both people beginning the estate planning process and those reconsidering plans they already have. Reviewing an existing plan can include considering whether the documents still reflect current intentions and whether assets are arranged consistently with the intended method of transfer.

For families with minor children, aging relatives, significant real estate, or concerns about probate and incapacity, those changes can be particularly important to address rather than assuming an older plan will continue to work as originally intended.

A Father-and-Son Practice With Decades of Legal Experience

The Law Offices of Miller & Miller was established in 1994 and describes itself as a father-and-son law firm with almost 70 years of combined legal experience.

Founder and shareholder Dennis H. Miller has practiced law for nearly 45 years and has handled estate planning as part of his general legal practice. Gordon A. Miller, shareholder and chief legal officer, has more than 25 years of legal experience.

The firm's Michigan practice is broader than estate law alone and also includes real estate, small business, litigation, and other legal matters. For MI Estate Law Hub, its most relevant work is the combination of estate planning, probate, elder law, guardianship, conservatorship, and property-related planning available through its Allen Park office.

Communities Served

Law Offices of Miller & Miller, P.C. maintains its Michigan office at 6803 Roosevelt Avenue in Allen Park. The firm provides estate planning, probate, elder law, guardianship, conservatorship, and related legal services to clients in Michigan.

Practice Areas

• Estate Planning

• Wills

• Trusts

• Living Trusts

• Powers of Attorney

• Probate

• Probate Avoidance Planning

• Elder Law

• Guardianships

• Conservatorships

• Lady Bird Deeds

• Deeds

• Real Estate