Three Common Cleveland County Inheritance Conflicts To Avoid
Conflict can sometimes tear Cleveland County families apart after the death of a loved one. Make sure that does not happen to yours by working with the estate planning lawyers of the Legal Advantage Group.
Deaths are often tragic, even if they sometimes come as a relief to a loved one and their family. But few things are as tragic or heartbreaking as watching that family then tear itself apart or be plunged into difficulty because of a conflict over their inheritance. This is not an occurrence you want to happen to your family, but it is possible to avoid it.
In Norman and throughout Cleveland County and the greater Oklahoma City area, estate planning attorneys from the Legal Advantage Group, like Dan Loeliger, work with individuals and families to help avoid potential conflicts and disputes that could emerge after their death.
That work starts by helping folks just like you understand and anticipate some of the most common sources of such conflicts for Oklahoma families. Once you do, you can work with an estate planning lawyer to set up the right protections and legal documents to avoid or disarm the vast majority of possible disputes or problems.
Estate Planning: Avoiding A Divisive Or Destructive Legacy
Estate planning is particularly prone to conflict and division for a number of reasons that contribute to tensions across all types of situations.
On the most obvious level, there is grief and loss and other emotions which are already running high after the death of a loved one. Grief often comes with anger, denial, and even blame, which can then exacerbate other issues.
On a more cynical level, many of these conflicts will (seemingly) revolve around money. Since inheritance is the primary method by which money and valuable properties change hands after a death, it cannot be discounted as a factor in conflict.
Ultimately, the worst conflicts are those where the two factors mix to create a unique cocktail. When people feel cheated of their due, unjustly sidelined, or robbed of their rights, they are even more likely to fight bitterly or stubbornly.
Some of those conflicts will be all but inevitable, but many can be avoided by preparing a clear and effective estate plan ahead of time with a lawyer. And even those that cannot be avoided can have their severity dramatically reduced by anticipating them with proactive estate planning.
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Three Common Inheritance Conflicts You Can Avoid
In Cleveland County, conflict can emerge at nearly every stage of the probate and estate resolution process, and while some might be unavoidable, many can be prevented with the help of an experienced estate planning lawyer.
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Contested Wills
The resolution of each estate starts with the court asking for a will. If no last will and testament can be located, then the court allocates the person's belongings and assets according to some basic and inflexible state laws.
However, sometimes, there will also be questions as to the validity of a will. Perhaps it was not properly signed or notarized, or it was signed under suspicious circumstances, or there are two wills, and different members of the family support different ones. All are examples of conflicts over your will, the vast majority of which will be due to technical errors or an absence of detail and clarity.
An estate planning lawyer will ensure the will is legally binding, that it is not being signed under duress, and that there is no room for misinterpretation within its beneficiary designations. Alternatively, your lawyer can help you set up a trust, for even less ambiguity, and that will allow your estate to bypass probate, avoiding the entire process and all its possible conflicts.
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Unintended Consequences
Sometimes, conflicts occur after or even because of the resolution of an estate. Families may have to sell a beloved home to fulfill the designation requirements, or a relative may become worse off because the money you left them interferes with their disability or other Social Security benefits.
These can create challenges or conflicts among the family members you leave behind, even if you left everything or nothing at all to them. Most of the time, however, they are caused by inexperienced estate planning, often done by ordinary people trying to avoid the costs of a lawyer, but make mistakes that end up costing everyone far more.
Even if you do not wish to have your estate plan drafted by a lawyer, at least have one review everything before you sign anything to make sure no obvious mistakes have been made.
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Conflicts Over Life Itself
By far the most depressing conflicts are those in which relatives fight over whether someone should fight over the fate of a loved one. If you become incapacitated in Oklahoma, doctors will do their best to respect your wishes with regard to life-sustaining or prolonging care, but if no instructions have been given, your relatives may need to go to court to have a decision made.
Sometimes they will even disagree over what that decisions should be, or who should get to make it. Even more depressing, perhaps, is when family members fight over who gets to (or has to) take care of an ailing or incapacitated loved one. They might fight over who should get guardianship, or challenge the decisions made by a court-designated guardian.
Planning ahead can avoid such situations by making your wishes and instructions clear from the start. An advanced healthcare directive will make your medical wishes crystal clear, and powers of attorney will mean no relative has to go to court to fight for the right to make decisions on your behalf. Your estate planning attorney will make sure all of these documents work together to protect your wishes and your family.
Call For A Free Consultation | (405) 449-5777
Call Us Today And Protect Those You Leave Behind
Legal Advantage Group | Avoid conflict amongst your family after your death by being prepared while alive.
You might not want to think about what happens after your death, as these are complex realities to face. But no matter how unpleasant it might be, one fact is unavoidable: if you do not, the consequences could be dire. And those who are likely to pay the price for it are the very people who care the most.
We would love nothing more than never to have to go to a courthouse in Cleveland County to watch a family tear itself apart after a death, but to do that, we need to make sure everyone has a solid estate plan in place while alive.
Help us help you and your family by contacting the Legal Advantage Group to schedule a consultation and begin the estate planning process today. Just call (405) 449-5777 or contact our firm online.
