Our Estate Planning practice provides a wide range of individualized services that are tailored to the specific goals and objectives of each person. The experience of our practice group ranges from preparing simple wills, to planning and administering complex multi-million dollar estates. In addition, we are sensitive and highly specialized with elder law matters and the complicated issues that involve the disability and aging of a loved one. The diverse clientele we serve includes people of all ages, including single persons, married couples, families with young children, and blended families and domestic partners.
Estate Planning
Estate planning is a necessity of life. Our estate planning services range from the most basic estate planning to planning for large estates, with issues involving life-time wealth transfers, asset protection, and specialized planning for owners of closely held businesses or executives of publicly held corporations. Chestnut Cambronne also has extensive experience assisting clients with highly specialized planning needs like blended families and families with persons with disabilities.
Some of the tools for these planning strategies include:
- Basic Wills and Testamentary Trusts
- Estate Tax Planning
- Living Trusts
- Marital Property Trusts
- Educational Trusts
- Crummey Trusts
- Life Insurance Trusts
- Grantor Retained Trusts
- Charitable Remainder Trusts
- Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies
The most important tool for planning, however, is getting to know the client’s issues and needs. Each person’s life is unique, and consequently each estate plan must be tailored to meet the particular goals of the individuals and families involved. Chestnut Cambronne estate planning attorneys have the experience and understanding to create a plan to meet those goals.
Probate and Trust Administration
The death of a loved one can bring a flurry of paperwork. Our experience with the administration of estates and trusts can ease your burden. In addition, the possible tax issues that may arise during estate or trust administration can demand significant tax and legal expertise from the estate planning advisor. We assist clients in probating estates and administering trusts from the most simple estates and trusts to the most complex ones. Administration services include:
- Probate
- Trust administration
- Trust funding and administration
- Estate settlement
- Preparation and filing of federal and state estate tax, income tax, gift tax, and generation skipping transfer tax returns
- Beneficiary designated asset recovery
In addition to these services, Chestnut Cambronne has broader litigation capabilities in the unusual circumstance where an estate is a party to a lawsuit.
Guardianships and Conservatorships
There are times when the person whose interests are at issue can no longer reasonably manage their own affairs. In those circumstances, a guardian or conservator will be required to look after the best interests. Chestnut Cambronne can help a family in this particularly difficult time by seeing the appointment of a guardian or conservator through from the beginning to end and at all steps in between. These steps can include:
- Case evaluation
- Petition for guardianship or conservatorship
- Objections to petitions
- Accounting and reporting
- Terminations