Virginia Wills Attorney John Monaghan

A Will is about your peace of mind and your desires.

• You can use a will to choose a guardian for your minor children.
• You can use a will to provide for a disabled loved one.
• You can use a will to pick your own executor (person who distributes your estate).
• You can use a will to reduce your estate and probate taxes.
• You can use a will to honor (and make sure that others honor) a promise to giving bequest to someone special.
• You can use a will to pick which charities you want to give your money to.
• You can use a will to pick who gets what family heirlooms.
• You can use a will to disinherit someone.

A will is an estate planning tool that you use to do all of the things above.

Without a will, you die intestate and then the Commonwealth's intestacy statutes pick your heirs for you, it's Domestic Relations laws pick your child's guardian and financial trustee (after an expensive Court proceeding), it does not honor any promises you made and it charges you a lot of money to do this.

So for example, a will is useful to a couple with young children because, for a reasonable fee, it protects the children if their parents should die – the parents and not a Court will pick the children's guardian.

Or for another example, senior citizens find wills useful to prevent fights amongst the children about inheritances, to ensure that heirlooms and things of sentimental value are distributed fairly or to the right people and to reduce their taxes so that their children and not the state gets their money.

Wills are not easy to draft. A wrong word can change the legal effect of the will. An improper signature can invalidate the entire will. It's important to draft estate planning documents so that they are clear, valid and flexible i.e. not made obsolete tomorrow. A will is good until revoked, for example a will made in the 1970s would still be good today.

My trial experience gives me insight into how to properly draft wills, trusts and other estate planning documents. Please call for a consultation. Contact me today, the consultation is free.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How long to draft a Will?
I can draft a Will within one week.

Do you come to us?
Yes. I will visit you wherever you need me to. (There is no surcharge but Wills would take two weeks.)

I need it done in a rush, can you do that?
Yes, I can, but there may be a rush surcharge.

What are your fees?
A simple will starts at $350. However, a will with a testamentary trust starts at $500. But until you come in for a consultation, I cannot tell you the exact fee.

Do you provide assistance with probate and estate administration?
Yes, I can advise you on legal aspects of probate or trust administration. Questions that the direction to the probate forms or that the Commissioner of Accounts does not answer, I can answer or find the answer for you.

Estates often need legal documents drafted. I can draft deeds, contracts, and disclaimers for an estate or heir at a reasonable fee. Opinion letters on whether the estate was properly probated, the ownership of a piece of property or the legal status of anything else are also provided. Often an Executor or administrator of an estate in probate does not have the time to complete the necessary forms for the Commissioner of Accounts. I will complete the forms on their behalf.

What about a Trust or joint ownership instead of a Will?
A Trust is more expensive than a will, needs to be funded and requires a will anyways. It is best used for managing very large sums of money, protecting profligate heirs from themselves, tax management, charity funding and asset management. A Trust also needs the maker to change their habits and way of doing things i.e. the trust is more inconvenient. Thus, a Trust is best only under certain circumstances.

Joint ownership can cause gift tax problems. Also, it can unintentionally disinherit other people. Also, it can cause problems with creditors.