Legal Services

Carol provides estate planning services for individuals and couples, including explaining how trusts, wills and powers of attorney work, advising on options for carrying out the client’s estate planning goals, and drafting wills, trusts and powers of attorney. Carol also represents family members and professional fiduciaries in probate and trust administration matters, helping them to implement the deceased’s or incapacitated person’s wishes.

Carol represents individuals and couples in their estate planning.  She will take the time to understand your financial situation and your relationships, so that she may best advise you in the estate planning decisions you will need to make.  She will take the time to explain general estate planning concepts and the estate planning issues specific to your situation.  Carol will discuss with you the options available to you to reach your estate planning goals and will draft the documents necessary to implement those goals.  She will help you select a guardian for minor children, a trustee and/or an executor, and an agent for health care, to act for you when you are incapacitated or after your death.  She will help you structure your estate plan so that your estate passes at your death to your beneficiaries as you intend and with due consideration to estate taxes and to distribution timelines.

She enjoys working with people and listening to everyone’s unique story and legacy goals.

Carol also represents clients in probate estate and trust administrations.  Probate is a court supervised proceeding to transfer the decedent’s assets to his or her beneficiaries.  The person chosen to administer the probate estate is the “executor” or the “administrator.”  Trust administrations are usually not court supervised, but trustees nevertheless have fiduciary duties they must carefully follow.  Carol advises her clients as to whether a trust administration or a probate proceeding or both are needed and prepares the legal documents required for her clients to obtain the authority necessary to act on behalf of an estate or trust.  She represents executors, administrators and trustees, advises them of their duties, and prepares the necessary legal documents necessary in trust and estate administrations.