I thought I’d write about why estate plans are so long this week because I’ve had a few clients ask about it.

The question is something like “our stuff is so simple – do we really need all of this?”

And that’s a great question.

And here’s the answer.

1. We’re trying to be clear.

It’s important to remember your plan is going to be used AFTER you are gone and can no longer provide insight about what you meant, so we want to make sure it’s crystal clear.

To be clear, we need to make sure we know what we mean by each word (definitions).

To be clear, we need to make sure someone else reading it would be able to interpret it.

And, to be clear, it needs to meet the standard of quality that those reading it (attorney and judges, presumably) are expecting to find to make their job easy (interpreting the docs).

Clarity over brevity.

2. We’re trying to be thorough.

Remember that thing about not really using what we create until you’re dead (or incapacitated)?

Because we are working under those circumstances, we need to provide insight/direction/coverage for EVERY possible scenario that could pop up.

This is why there are so many sections of a Trust, for example.

We’re trying to provide direction and prevent lawsuits when wonky things happen.

Will you need to utilize every clause in your trust? Hopefully not.

But if you did, you’d want to make sure that section was included (and you never know which ones you need/don’t need).

3. There’s a lot to cover.

Inside of your trust, for example, we’re not just directing where everything goes when you die.

We need to include information about how to change the trust.

We need information about taxes, expenses, etc. (and we’re talking income AND estate taxes).

We need information about what happens while you’re alive, and when you’re dead.

We need Trustee directions for administration (notice/reporting/investing/disputes/resignation/appointing successors/etc.).

Because we’re trying to cover a wide area we end up with a comprehensive (and long) document.

At the end of the day, we wouldn’t be adding in anything that we didn’t think needed to be there.

We want it to work. We want it to be easy. And we want it to be clear.

Hope that helps!

That’s it for today!

Have a great week!

Cheers,

Christopher Small
Founder/CEO
CMS Law Firm LLC

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