Shinners & Ellsworth

Estate Planning Attorneys in Saginaw, Michigan

Shinners & Ellsworth, PLC helps individuals and families prepare wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and medical directives. The firm also provides probate-avoidance planning for clients who want to consider how property will transfer after death.

Its broader practice includes family law, civil and business law, juvenile matters, criminal defense, and personal injury. These services address legal problems that may arise during major changes in a family’s personal, financial, or business circumstances.

Deciding Who Should Receive Family Property

A will records instructions for property that becomes part of a probate estate. It allows a person to name beneficiaries and designate someone to handle the estate after death.

Without a valid will, Michigan law determines who inherits probate property. That result may not reflect the deceased person’s actual wishes, particularly when the family includes a long-term partner, stepchildren, relatives with different financial needs, or people whom the owner intended to exclude or benefit differently.

A will can also reduce uncertainty among surviving relatives. Family members may remember informal conversations differently, while written instructions give them and the person administering the estate a clearer direction to follow.

Some assets are controlled by ownership arrangements or beneficiary designations rather than a will. Reviewing those assets as part of the planning process can help a family understand how different forms of property are expected to pass.

Using a Trust to Manage an Inheritance

A trust can establish how property will be managed and distributed for selected beneficiaries. Unlike an immediate gift, a trust may continue over time and provide instructions for the trustee responsible for its administration.

This structure can be useful when beneficiaries should not receive their full inheritance at once. Parents may want property held for younger children, while other families may want distributions made in stages or managed under specific conditions.

The person selected as trustee assumes responsibility for following the trust’s terms and managing its property. The choice requires consideration of the individual’s reliability, judgment, and ability to handle financial responsibilities.

Creating a trust is only one part of the process. Property intended to be governed by the trust must be properly connected to it. Otherwise, an asset may remain outside the arrangement and transfer through a different method.

Choosing Someone to Handle Financial Matters

A durable power of attorney allows another person to act in financial or legal matters when authorized. It can become important if illness or injury leaves someone unable to manage bills, banking, property, or other necessary transactions independently.

Without an effective authorization, relatives may discover that being a spouse, child, or close family member does not automatically give them access to accounts or authority over property. The family could then face additional legal proceedings while also responding to a health crisis.

Selecting an agent requires careful judgment. The person may be placed in a position of significant trust and should be capable of managing records, following instructions, and separating the individual’s interests from personal considerations.

The document should reflect the authority the person intends to grant. Different families may need help with different types of property, business obligations, or routine financial responsibilities.

Recording Medical-Care Preferences

Shinners & Ellsworth prepares medical directives and living wills for clients who want to document healthcare instructions. These documents can become relevant when a patient cannot communicate or participate in medical decisions.

Advance planning can identify who should speak with healthcare providers and provide direction about the person’s preferences. This can reduce the pressure on relatives who might otherwise be asked to make difficult decisions without knowing what their loved one wanted.

Medical and financial decision-making involve different responsibilities. Coordinating the appropriate documents helps ensure that the people selected for each role have the authority needed to address the circumstances they may encounter.

Considering Ways to Avoid Probate

The firm assists clients with probate-avoidance strategies. Depending on the property involved, assets may transfer through a trust, joint ownership, or a beneficiary designation rather than through the probate estate.

Avoiding probate is not simply a matter of signing one document. Each asset must be reviewed to determine how it is owned and what transfer instructions apply. A plan can fail to work as intended when ownership records and beneficiary designations are inconsistent with the estate documents.

Probate avoidance may appeal to families seeking a more direct transfer of property. However, the arrangements should still account for who will receive the asset, who can manage it if the owner becomes incapacitated, and how the transfer fits with the rest of the estate plan.

Updating a Plan After Life Changes

An estate plan should continue to reflect the client’s current family and financial circumstances. Marriage, divorce, separation, the birth of a child, the death of a beneficiary, or a change in business ownership can affect earlier decisions.

Shinners & Ellsworth also practices in family law and civil and business law. Those areas may be relevant when a client’s planning needs arise alongside a divorce, property dispute, contract matter, or newly formed business.

Periodic review gives clients an opportunity to reconsider their chosen decision-makers, beneficiaries, and property-transfer arrangements before outdated instructions create problems for the family.

Serving Saginaw, Midland, Bay City, and Beyond

Shinners & Ellsworth is located in Saginaw and specifically serves clients in Saginaw, Midland, and Bay City. The firm also handles matters elsewhere in Michigan.

Practice Areas

• Wills

• Trusts

• Durable powers of attorney

• Medical directives and living wills

• Probate-avoidance planning

• Family law

• Civil and business law