Wills, Trusts & Probate

Wills

Your will is a legal document in which you give certain instructions to be carried out after your death, including the distribution of your assets and your choice of guardians for your children. Attorney Louis W. Mountzoures can help you draft a will in which, you will name:

You may name beneficiaries (family members, friends, spouse, domestic partner or charitable organizations, for example) to receive your assets according to the instructions in your will.

You may nominate a person to be responsible for your child’s personal care if you and your spouse die before the child turns 18. You may also name a guardian - who may or may not be the same person - to be responsible for managing any assets given to the child, until he or she is 18 years old, or thereafter.

You may nominate a person or institution to collect and manage your assets, pay any debts, expenses and taxes that might be due, and then, with the court’s approval, distribute your assets to your beneficiaries according to the instructions in your will.

Whether your estate is large or small, a will can be the most important part of any estate plan. Our firm offers a free consultation, at which we will provide you with a detailed assessment of your estate planning needs.

Living Trusts

A trust is an arrangement under which one person, called a trustee, holds legal title to property for another person, called a beneficiary. You can be the trustee of your own living trust, keeping full control over all property held in trust, including the right to amend, revoke or terminate the trust at any time.

A “living trust” (also called an “inter vivos” trust) is simply a trust you create while you’re alive, rather than one that is created at your death.
Different kinds of living trusts can help you avoid probate, reduce estate taxes, or set up long-term property management.

The big advantage to making a living trust is that property left through the trust doesn’t have to go through probate court.

Living trusts can also be a benefit if a trustee becomes ill, disabled or incapacitated. In such a case, the beneficiary you have chosen can step right in and manage your affairs without Court intervention.

A living trust can be a valuable part of any estate plan. Our firm offers a free consultation, at which we will provide you with a detailed assessment of your estate planning needs.

Probate, Tax & Trust Administration

Probate is the Court supervised process of paying debts and distributing property to the people who inherit it.

The emotions associated with losing a loved one can make it difficult to deal with any legal matter that may result from their death. In addition, many people can find the probate process lengthy, frustrating, confusing and expensive.
Attorney Louis W. Mountzoures represents both in-state and out-of-state clients, whose relatives have left assets in Massachusetts. Our firm will help guide you through probate and inheritance matters in a professional, sensitive and cost-effective manner.

Our experience stretches across a wide range of probate and inheritance matters including the distribution of assets, executor and fiduciary law, will contests, and estate administration and taxation.
While every probate and inheritance situation is unique, our primary goal remains consistent: protecting your interests and relieving the legal burden that may follow the passing of a loved one.

Our firm offers a free consultation, at which we will provide you with
a detailed assessment of your probate and inheritance needs.