Germantown Estate Planning Attorney

Tennessee's Trusted Estate Planning Advocate

Do you have a legally enforceable estate plan that dictates your wishes for who will inherit your assets after you pass away? If you haven’t taken the necessary legal steps to ensure your loved ones will be provided for, now is the time to act. By doing so, you proactively take the necessary steps to ensure your loved ones will be provided for, that your end-of-life wishes will be honored, and you can even avoid the possibility that your surviving loved ones will be embroiled in conflict upon your death.

At Snider & Horner, PLLC, our skilled estate planning attorneys have in-depth expertise in drafting wills and establishing trusts and are familiar with Tennessee probate law. Above all, our team’s goal is to ensure we pay close attention to detail so your estate plan is rock-solid and kept up-to-date.

Schedule an initial consultation by reaching out online or call (901) 730-8880 to discuss building your estate plan.

Essential Estate Planning Guidance in West Tennessee

While it may be tempting to draft a DIY estate plan, our estate planning attorney highly discourage it. Ensuring you get sound advice that follows Tennessee law means you need more than what an online crash course could possibly provide. A comprehensive estate plan includes more than just a last will and testament, too, and there is a lot to consider when planning for the future and protecting your family so they can carry on without you.

If you should die without an estate plan in Tennessee, there is no guarantee your assets will be distributed according to your wishes. Any of the preferences you had during your lifetime, even if you expressed them to others, cannot be legally enforced without a valid estate plan. This means your estate will be subject to Tennessee’s intestacy laws, instead. You can avoid this, though. By proactively creating an estate plan, your end-of-life legal concerns and the distribution of your assets will follow your wishes. Otherwise, the state’s intestacy laws will determine all of the particulars and proportionally distribute your assets to your most immediate surviving family members. If you have none, then the government will get your property.

What Is Included in an Estate Plan?

Your estate plan is vital in dictating your wishes for end-of-life decisions and determining how your assets will be distributed after you pass away. A robust estate plan can keep these matters from probate court, result in lower associated taxes, and provide many other benefits and solutions to problems that most people aren’t even aware could affect them.

Our legal team provides sound legal advice and can assist you in making an estate plan from scratch or updating the documents in an existing estate plan. We help our clients with the following tasks:

• Drafting and updating wills
• Establishing trusts, which are more complex wills and require ongoing maintenance and oversight
• Considering your estate’s taxes
• Establishing powers of attorney
• Addressing conservatorship matters
• Setting up advance directives for end-of-life care
• Completing necessary paperwork and documentation

Wills vs. Trusts

You may be at least somewhat familiar with the purpose of a will, but do you know that trusts offer some key advantages that wills do not? When you create one, you appoint a person known as a trustee, who will legally possess and manage the trust’s assets and eventually distribute them to your beneficiaries according to your instructions. Trusts are highly complex compared to wills, requiring ongoing maintenance and oversight to avoid any potential disputes between trustees and beneficiaries that could lead to contentious legal battles.

Whether you have a will, a trust, or both, they must be properly executed to be enforced in the state of Tennessee. If you aren’t sure which is right for you or you don’t know where to start, we can help answer your questions as we gain a complete understanding of your situation. We will walk you through your options to advise you which estate planning elements are best suited to meet your goals, and our team will continue being accessible for future concerns and assisting with estate plan updates.

Contact Our Germantown Estate Planning Lawyer Today 

There’s no reason not to make an estate plan, no matter your age, health, or financial circumstances, and you should know that creating an estate plan isn’t made in a day. It takes time and effective legal guidance with the assistance and guidance of a skilled and knowledgeable estate planning attorney. Once your estate plan is in place, you can refer back to our team for continued legal guidance to address any emerging concerns or for help with updates.

At Snider & Horner, PLLC, we have helped countless Tennesseans plan for the future and build estate plans that protect their families for decades to come. When you choose our law firm, you can rest assured our years of experience will benefit more than just you, but your surviving loved ones who are left behind once you’re gone. Our team truly cares and genuinely wants to see you and your family thrive. We are detail-oriented and leave no stone unturned in building effective estate plans with our in-depth knowledge of both Tennessee and federal laws affecting your estate plan.

Don’t wait to begin building your estate plan. For a consultation and to start exploring your options, reach out to our legal team by calling (901) 730-8880 or fill out our online contact form today.