No matter what stage of life, it pays to have an established relationship with an attorney. Even if you do a good job of handling your family matters, your professional and financial affairs, and your tax matters, there will inevitably come a time when a quick chat with an attorney who is familiar with you and your situation just makes sense.
Almost every major life event has some sort of legal implications: got a new job, lost an old job, getting married, starting a business, buying a home, having a baby, charitable giving, selling a home, getting a divorce, selling a business, estate planning. You got a new job, did you sign a non-compete or negotiate your employment terms? You lost an old job, was it a discriminatory release? Your partner won't marry you until you sign a "pre-nup"?
Let's look at what happens if you have your own business. First, you have to set it up properly with the IRS and your state, county and city government to avoid unexpected fees and taxes. Don't forget your liability insurances too. Few errors and omissions policies cover everything. You'll want to give a little thought to how you structure your business entity, especially if you won't be buying any liability insurance right away. If you've got a partner, or your thinking about bringing one in or kicking one out, you're going to need some written agreement to set the ground rules.
There's your family's future to think about too. Planning for your own mom and dad's care in their later years is something everyone should already be thinking about. Are they planning to age in place? Will they need help maintaining their personal dignity or covering expenses, including making application to Medicaid? If so, you'll need to start planning for that as early as possible as some techniques take five years or more to implement.
What about your spouse and children? Have you given your spouse your power of attorney and named your spouse as your health care surrogate in case something should happen to you? Do you have personal or family values that you want to pass on to your children even if your not here to do it personally? You can build that into your estate planning documents such as your Last Will and Testament or a trust. You can even create a family giving plan to foster social responsibility in your children. If you build it into your estate planning you create a legacy. If you build it into your life planning, you instill a tradition of philanthropy in your family.
It doesn't take the unexpected to put strains on your daily life. But when your dealing with something as important as your life, its important to have an attorney on your team. Every attorney is a generalist in legal theory, analysis, fact-finding and negotiation. So, no matter what your attorney's specialty, your attorney can help you with the bigger picture and when you need a different subject matter expert, you attorney can point you in the right direction.
Change is certain. Whether you see it coming or it sneaks up on you, having an attorney available can bring peace of mind. And these days, you don't have to pay an attorney a large retainer for the privilege of being able to pick up the phone and chat.
If you don't already have that type of relationship with an attorney, my strong advice to you is to spend the time and money on an initial consultation with at least one attorney for "prospective future services and advice".
When you find the attorney you want, introduce the attorney to your other advisors: CPA, financial advisor, insurance agent, etc. You can do it short and sweet in an email if you'd like. Finally, consider signing a Letter of Authorization allowing each of them to speak freely among themselves when when they are doing work for you. It speeds things up, increases efficiencies and helps keep your bills down.
For more information on the Letter of Authorization or to speak to an attorney, call our office at (904) 2446-7485.
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