Estate Planning Attorneys
in Fort Worth, Texas

We Can Help You Achieve Your Estate Objectives

At the Sawyer Law Firm, PLLC in Fort Worth, Texas, we know you want to eliminate the possibility of ambiguity and uncertainty regarding your wishes.

Our attorneys will review your assets carefully to develop an estate plan that addresses your particular asset makeup. Our goal is to properly classify the character of a given asset as a community or separate property.

Our estate planning clients typically want a combination of:

• Wealth preservation

• Tax minimization

• Succession planning

Our clients rely on our experience and comprehensive understanding of wills and trusts and our ability to craft a plan that fits their specific needs. If you have a team of wealth advisors, we will work with them to coordinate everyone’s efforts. Our goal is to ensure you have an effective, cohesive plan.

The Fundamentals of An Estate Plan

For basic estate planning needs, where neither spouse anticipates a taxable estate, a basic estate planning package is sufficient to meet most situations.

We will draft your will or trust so your estate passes to your heirs or beneficiaries in a manner consistent with your wishes.

To ensure that trusted persons are designated to make important financial and health care decisions on your behalf in the event of your incapacity, we will prepare incapacity planning documents:

• A statutory durable power of attorney

• A medical power of attorney

• Appointment of guardian in the event of future incapacity or need

To ensure that end-of-life medical treatment decisions are carried out according to your desires, we can prepare a Directive to Physicians and Family or Surrogates (also known as a living will).

Elements of Complex Estate Plans

For families whose estates are large enough to require careful tax or business succession planning — estates exceeding the current applicable exclusion amount — we can advise you about bypass trusts for maximizing the value of your exemption under both the federal estate tax and the generation-skipping transfer tax.

We can also advise you regarding techniques for minimizing your estate’s exposure to taxation:

• Family limited partnerships

• Limited liability companies

• Gifts or Sales of assets to Defective Grantor Trusts

• Charitable trusts

• Other methods

We also offer advice regarding the differences between dependent and independent probate administration under Texas law. If creditors are not an issue, we help you take advantage of the streamlined probate process available under independent administration.

In all cases, we tailor our estate planning services to your family’s specific needs and objectives.

How to Contact Us

To schedule an appointment with one of our lawyers, call the Sawyer Law Firm, PLLC in Fort Worth, Texas, or contact us online.