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Jasper L. Edwards
People all over the world
deliberately avoid broaching the subject of Wills or creating a will. In Louisiana, if you decide
not to draft a will, the law makes its own decisions on how
your assets should be divided. However, drafting a Will will go a long way towards protecting your
loved ones, including all of your hard-earnedassets. So instead of passing the
responsibilty for your own affairs to the behest of the courts, don't you think now would be
a good time to plan your Will before it's
too late ?
The thing is, the way you decide to
distribute your assets when you're gone is really up to you whenever you've made a Will. If you
prefer, you can distribute all of y our estate to just one
person, your spouse, relatives or friends. Even making a donation to a charitable organization is
an extremely popular bequest. You may bequest cash and
other property, such as jewelry, to anyone you care to name in your will.
Beyond regular estate planning,
Louisiana law enables you to create a Special Needs Trust for disabled beneficiaries, so as to
ensure quality of life for them when
you're gone. Popular with many people is the creation of a
Trust or Class Trust for children, therefore, ensuring their inheritance is
secured.
You can also appoint an independent administrator
to manage your last will and testament, as per LA Act 974. This enables you to
circumnavigate the appointment of any administrator who may not be completely independent and whom may be needed to
wade through complex court issues, whilst administering the distribution of the
estate.
Independent administrators can be
appointed from the outset of your will, or alternatively with the consent of the beneficiaries.
Whilst the administrator will handle
the distribution of your assets, this leaves you to decide who
and how your beneficiaries will receive your assets.
Louisiana estate planning needn't
be complex, however, if you do not draft a will, all assets will be distributed according to state
laws. In Louisiana, there are two
kinds of property that included in any estate. These are: 1.
"Community property", that is, property obtained during marriage or common law relationship.
2. "Separate property", that is, any property owned by one spouse
only.
Where no will has been made,
"Community property" passes to the offspring, whilst enabling the surviving spouse the right of
"usufruct" (to enjoy and use the property)
until either they die or re-marry. If there are no offspring and no
will, by default, all Community Property passes to the spouse and any Separate Property will
be enjoyed by your
parents (if living) through the right of usufruct.
All of the above goes to
demonstrate that by making a Will, ultimately you have control over your estate, including how it's
distributed. That's why it's good idea to seek advice from an
attorney specializing in estate planning so you know your estate is managed to your
satisfaction.
RESOURCE
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Free Wills to
Print provides detailed information on Free Wills, How to Write a Will,
Last Will And Testament, Living Wills and more.
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