Estate planning
Fundamental Estate Planning in Tampa: the documents every Florida family should have in order
A will, powers of attorney, a living will and health care directives are the base of a family plan. Here is what each one does, and what a will cannot do.
Chapter 01
A will speaks only after you die, and it does not skip probate
A will is the document most people picture, and it is useful, but it has limits that surprise families. It has no authority until death, so it does nothing for you if you are ill and cannot speak for yourself. It also does not avoid probate. In Florida a will is better understood as an admission ticket to probate: it tells the court what you wanted, and the court process then follows from there.
What a will does well is name people. It is the place to nominate guardians for minor children, and to say who should be in charge of settling your affairs. For parents of young children in Tampa, that nomination is a decision worth making on purpose. If your goal is to keep the estate out of probate, Edmund Gegan pairs the will with a trust; the Living Trusts page explains how that works.
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Wills, trusts, powers of attorney and directives: what each document is for
A sound Florida estate plan is a set of documents, each with its own job. Wills and revocable living trusts say who receives your property and who is in charge. Irrevocable trusts and testamentary trusts, which a will creates, are used when a gift needs more structure than simply handing it over. They are different tools, and the right mix depends on your family and on what you own.
Other documents speak for you while you are alive. A durable power of attorney names someone to handle your financial matters if you cannot. A living will and an advance health care directive put your medical wishes in writing, so your family is not left guessing in the middle of a crisis. Edmund walks through each one at the design meeting in plain language. The free initial consultation, at (813) 248-8900, is where that starts.
Chapter 03
Planning for minor children in Florida, and a place to start at home
Parents of young children carry the heaviest version of the question: if something happened to both of us, who would raise our kids, and who would manage what we leave them? A will can nominate guardians. A trust can hold what a child inherits, so it is managed for them rather than handed over all at once. Those two decisions are usually the center of a young family's plan, and they belong in the broader Estate Planning picture.
Two resources help you start before you ever sit down with an attorney. The Family Action Plan is a free download from the Gegan Law Office site that helps you gather the key facts of your household. The firm's page on The Living Will explains how your health care wishes are put in writing and who speaks for you if you cannot. Both are a calm way to arrive at the first meeting prepared.
“He explained everything clearly and made sure I understood my legal rights.” Usha Patel, Google review