Miami Estate Lawyer

Everyone should create a comprehensive estate plan at some point in their lives, and our Miami estate planning lawyer is here to help you create yours. Our goal is to help you protect your life’s work through a variety of planning options, thereby ensuring that your wishes are known and followed both before and after you pass on. Proper planning can help protect your assets, minimize the stress for your family, and give you peace of mind. Contact the Law Offices of Gonzalo Funes, PA today to learn more about the estate planning process and how our competent firm can effectively guide you through it.

Estate Lawyer in Miami: Protecting Your Assets & Your Family

Here at The Law Offices of Gonzalo Funes, PA, we understand that planning is about more than property. To start, your estate plan should outline exactly how you wish to protect and care for your children. If you have any particular wishes for our burial or cremation, or for your funeral, we can help ensure that those wishes are honored. We can also help you make financial and medical decisions for yourself now, in the event that you cannot make them for yourself in the future.

While estate planning isn’t a comfortable topic to consider, the effort you put forth to brave those uncomfortable conversations will make your family have fewer obstacles to jump when they are coping with your loss. Our attorneys are patient, compassionate, and respectful of you and your family. Our job is to help make these difficult conversations slightly easier. We can begin the process of protecting your family’s future today.

Our Legal Services

Our Miami estate planning lawyer handles a wide array of estate planning matters, some of which are as follows:

• Wills:
  A last will and testament is perhaps the most common estate planning document. You can outline what you want to happen with your assets, appoint guardians for minor children, and more. It is never too soon to draft your will.
• Trusts:
  Trusts are among the best ways to preserve your assets. They can often help your family save on taxes and other expenses regarding the probate process after your passing.
• Powers of Attorney:
  Appointing a trusted person to make critical life decisions on your behalf ensures your wishes are followed should you ever be unable to make those decisions on your own.
• Advance Healthcare Directives:
  These allow you to outline your medical wishes long before a crisis occurs, giving your loved ones and medical providers clear instructions about the care you want.
• Asset Protection:
  Strategies designed to safeguard your wealth from future liabilities, creditors, and unforeseen financial risks, creating a stable foundation for your future.

Common Estate Planning Mistakes in Florida

One of the most unfortunate parts of estate planning is that many individuals truly think they have everything in order, only to learn later that a simple oversight left their families facing avoidable legal hurdles. The good news is that most of these problems can be prevented long before they ever have a chance to cause trouble. Below are some of the most common mistakes Florida residents make, along with a quick look at how you can avoid them.

By taking the time to address these concerns now, you are actually making life easier for those you care about most, even during what will undoubtedly be an emotionally difficult time for them.

When Should You Update Your Estate Plan?

There is a common misconception that once an estate plan is signed, it can be quietly tucked away in a drawer, never to be considered again. In reality, your life will continue to grow and change, which means your estate plan should evolve right alongside you. Whenever there is a significant event in your life or the lives of your loved ones, that plan deserves another careful look, simply to make sure it still reflects your current goals and circumstances.

Some of the most common moments that should prompt an update include marriage, divorce, the birth or adoption of a child, purchasing property here in Florida, or acquiring property in another state. Similarly, the passing of a spouse or another beneficiary may require you to rework how your assets will ultimately be handled. Even financial changes, such as starting a business or receiving a large inheritance, can call for a fresh conversation about the best way to protect what you have worked so hard to build.

It is also wise to remember that Florida laws do change from time to time, and certain planning tools that were effective years ago may not be the best option today. By revisiting your plan periodically, ideally every few years, you can ensure your documents remain valid, enforceable, and fully reflective of your wishes.

Contact an Estate Planning Lawyer in Miami, Florida

Estate planning is the final step in protecting all the efforts you have made throughout your life. Do not put any estate-related matters to chance by hiring just any lawyer; hire a lawyer who cares about you, your family, and your future. Contact the Law Offices of Gonzalo Funes, PA today so we can hear your goals and make them a reality.