Iowa Estate Plan

Its estimated that only 1/2 of the population actually has a will. So how important is it to have a will? It depends. (How's that for an answer? Kind of what you'd expect from an attorney.) One key element is that if you have minor children, a will can provide significant direction on who takes responsibility for your kids and how your assets are handled for them. If you don't provide that direction, the courts and family members are left trying to sort out the options, and quite possibly resulting in disputes. (And we know who wins if there are disputes - lawyers.) Another key element as to whether you need a will depends on how your assets are owned. You can own assets jointly with another person, in which case they may pass automatically to that joint owner. Or you can have a named beneficiary (like an insurance policy) in which that asset passes automatically to a named person. Under either of those scenarios, it doesn't matter if you have a will or not, as th...

Probate is a term that is often mentioned but many people don't understand what it really is. Probate is the legal process where, through a court-supervised process, a deceased individual's assets are transferred to their heirs/beneficiaries; taxes are paid; and debts/claims are handled. The probate process also includes the validation of a will. It is not necessary to have the attorney who drafted the will handle the process. The "administrator" or "executor" can select whatever attorney they choose. In Iowa, the probate process primarily consists of 5 stages. The filing of the inital set of documents to open the estate. Publication of notice in a newspaper for filing of claims. Waiting the time period for the filing of any claims or contests to the will. Filing of the report and inventory and payment of taxes. Distribution to beneficiaries/heirs and discharge of the executor/administrator. Every state is different in how the probate process is admin...