The goal of estate planning is to provide the client with an orderly plan for the effective accumulation, growth and retention of assets during his or her lifetime to insure the required accumulations to meet lifetime needs, e.g., college tuition and retirement funding, and for the tax-efficient transfer of assets during life by gifts and at the client’s death, in accordance with his or her testamentary objectives.
The objectives of estate planning are:
1. To assist the client in the accumulation and growth of assets to meet lifetime needs;
2. To enable the client to control the distribution of his or her assets, whether during life or at death, whenever possible;
3. To minimize potential income, gift, estate and inheritance taxes and administration expenses, within the framework of the client’s objectives;
4. To minimize losses, if any, from forced liquidation of property;
5. To maximize protection afforded by trusts or other devices for beneficiaries for those whom the client deems to be in need of such protection or professional guidance; and
6. To provide protection and flexibility for the client and the client’s estate during the clients’ lifetime, through trusts or powers of attorney, and/or living wills.