Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito

Estate Planning and Probate Attorneys in Clinton Township

Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito assists individuals and families with estate planning, probate, guardianships, conservatorships, and disputes involving wills. The Clinton Township firm also handles family law, criminal defense, and business litigation.

The practice traces its history to 1933. Its estate work addresses concerns that can arise both during a person’s lifetime and after death. Families may need documents authorizing someone to manage financial or medical decisions, a plan for transferring property to the next generation, or help settling an estate after a loved one dies. When relatives disagree about a will or probate matter, the firm also provides representation in contested proceedings.

Planning for Property and Inheritance

An estate plan allows individuals to decide how their property should be handled rather than leaving important questions unresolved. Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito prepares wills and trusts and advises clients about protecting assets, addressing potential tax matters, and limiting the time spent in probate when appropriate.

An estate may include a home, bank accounts, investments, vehicles, business interests, and personal belongings. Planning can identify who should receive that property and who should be responsible for carrying out the owner’s instructions.

These decisions may be straightforward when a person wants everything to pass to a spouse or adult children. Other families face more complicated circumstances. A parent may want assets held for younger children, someone in a second marriage may need to balance the interests of a spouse and children from an earlier relationship, or relatives may have different expectations about a family home.

Creating written instructions can reduce uncertainty, although the appropriate documents depend on the family, the assets involved, and the individual’s goals.

Wills and Trusts

A will can name beneficiaries and provide instructions for property that will pass through probate. It can also nominate someone to administer the estate after death.

Trusts can provide another method for holding, managing, and distributing assets. Depending on how a trust is structured and funded, it may help some property pass without probate. Trust provisions can also establish when and how beneficiaries will receive an inheritance.

Families may consider trust planning when they own real estate, have significant financial accounts, want property managed for younger beneficiaries, or need more control over future distributions. A trust may also be useful when ongoing management will be necessary rather than an immediate transfer of everything to the beneficiaries.

The firm’s estate-planning work includes attention to transfer taxes and other tax concerns. Because tax considerations vary by estate and can change over time, the relevance of those issues depends on the client’s assets and circumstances.

Powers of Attorney and Patient Advocate Documents

Estate planning also involves preparing for the possibility that illness, injury, or declining health will make it difficult for someone to manage personal affairs independently.

Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito prepares powers of attorney and patient advocate documents. A power of attorney can authorize a trusted person to address designated financial or legal matters. That authority may become important when someone cannot manage accounts, pay expenses, handle property, or complete necessary transactions.

A patient advocate document allows an individual to select someone to make healthcare decisions if the individual is unable to communicate or make those decisions personally. Preparing the document in advance gives the individual control over who will serve in that role.

Without appropriate planning, family members may be uncertain about who has authority to act during a medical crisis. They may also have different ideas about the care their relative would have wanted. Written documents can provide clearer direction and allow decisions to be made by someone the individual selected.

Guardianships and Conservatorships

The firm handles guardianship and conservatorship matters. These proceedings may become necessary when a person cannot make essential personal or financial decisions and no effective advance arrangement is in place.

A guardianship generally concerns decisions about an individual’s personal welfare, while a conservatorship involves management of finances and property. Families may encounter these issues when an older relative develops cognitive limitations, an adult experiences a serious illness or injury, or a person with disabilities needs continuing assistance.

Seeking court authority can be emotionally difficult. Relatives may agree that assistance is needed but disagree about who should provide it or how much authority should be granted. The process can also involve questions about the individual’s abilities, personal wishes, living arrangements, and financial needs.

Legal guidance can help families understand the court process and the responsibilities that accompany an appointment as guardian or conservator.

Settling an Estate After a Death

When a loved one dies, surviving family members may need to determine whether probate is required and who has authority to manage the estate. Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito handles decedents’ estates and probate matters.

The person responsible for an estate may need to locate a will, identify property, determine how assets are titled, address debts, communicate with beneficiaries, and complete required court filings. Real estate may need to be maintained or sold, and financial accounts may have to be collected before distributions can occur.

These responsibilities can be difficult for someone who is grieving and has never handled an estate. The process can become more complicated when records are incomplete, property ownership is unclear, or relatives disagree about what should happen.

The firm assists families with the probate process and the legal questions involved in transferring estate property.

Will Contests and Probate Disagreements

Disputes sometimes arise even when a written estate plan exists. Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito represents clients in probate and will-contest matters.

A disagreement may concern whether a will should control, how the document should be interpreted, or whether the person administering the estate is handling matters properly. Relatives may also dispute ownership of property or believe that the final distribution does not reflect the deceased person’s intentions.

Inheritance conflicts frequently involve more than money. A disagreement over a home, family belongings, or responsibility for an estate can deepen tensions among siblings and other relatives during an already difficult period.

Legal representation can help identify the controlling documents, determine which issues require court involvement, and protect a client’s interests during the probate proceeding.

Legal Matters That May Affect an Estate Plan

The firm’s broader practice includes family law, criminal defense, and business litigation. Its family-law work covers divorce, child custody, parenting time, child support, spousal support, and division of marital assets and debts.

Divorce and remarriage can create reasons to review an estate plan. Documents prepared during a marriage may no longer reflect the individual’s relationships or wishes, particularly when former spouses, new spouses, children, or stepchildren are involved.

Business ownership may also affect planning. Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito advises businesses concerning formation, contracts, operating issues, disputes, acquiring assets, and dissolution. Owners may need to consider how a business interest will be managed or transferred if an owner dies or becomes unable to participate.

These overlapping legal concerns make it important to revisit estate-planning documents after significant changes in family relationships, property ownership, or business circumstances.

Helping Clients Across Metro Detroit and Michigan

Urbani, Marshall, Thursam & DeVito is based in Clinton Township and represents clients throughout Michigan. Its work is concentrated primarily in Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties.

The firm’s location and three-county focus place it within reach of families throughout Metro Detroit who need help preparing an estate plan, responding to incapacity, settling an estate, or addressing a probate dispute.

Practice Areas

• Wills

• Trusts

• Powers of attorney

• Patient advocate documents

• Estate planning

• Probate and decedents’ estates

• Will contests

• Guardianships

• Conservatorships

• Family law

• Criminal defense

• Business litigation