Your first step is to evaluate your assets, values, morals, lifestyle, life skills and legacy that you want to pass on. Then you need to look at your financial situation, family dynamics and beneficiaries. Those factors, coupled with your goals, will determine what components your plan will require. It should always include a Capacity Plan and Will Plan, but often includes a Personal Administration Plan, Legacy Plan and Inter Vivos Plan.

Major factors for who you choose to implement your plan boil down to time, skills, burden, longevity and liability. If you have concerns about any of these, it is time to give us a call to set up a meeting.

Once you have identified a potential need, we would be pleased to meet to get to know one another and to discuss your situation, goals and estate plan needs. At this stage our goal is to inform you of the duties and responsibilities involved in the work we do so you can make an educated decision.

If you are ready to consider including us in your estate plan, we can create a proposal tailored to your needs, outlining where we can add value to your plan. Once this is finalized, we can prepare a fee quotation based on the scope of our role. A fee agreement is signed and a setup fee is paid before work begins with a lawyer.

A lawyer of your choosing or one recommended by us will need to draft the documents required such as Powers of Attorney and Wills. Once complete, the drafts are sent to Legacy Private Trust for review by our team prior to you signing them.

If we are administering an immediately active file, we have our team meet with you and other parties involved to set an action plan and next steps. Otherwise, in the case of a Power of Attorney for Property and/or Will appointment, we will lock all documentation, along with your completed Personal Data Sheet, in our secure and fireproof vault. We make sure to contact you every few years for updates on any changes to your situation which may affect your estate plan and our role.