Rochester Estate Planning Lawyers

Experienced Rochester estate planning lawyers providing the highest level of representation throughout Western New York.

Benjamin Franklin said that there are only two certain things in life – death and taxes – both of which form the basis of Estate Planning.

If you died tomorrow, are you sure that your loved ones would receive everything you own? How would you feel if ungrateful relatives or the government received most of your estate?

If you think this doesn’t happen – think again. Every year billions of dollars flow into probate courts across the U.S. and if this happens to you, everything you’ve worked for is put at risk.

You see there is an inherent unfairness in estate taxing. We pay income tax all our lives, and sometimes, as with dividends and bank interest, the same amount gets taxed twice or even three times.

Then when we die without an estate plan in place, our loved ones are asked to pay again. The good news is that there are ways around this and they all center on advanced planning.

The Rochester estate planning lawyers at Friedman & Ranzenhofer have helped residents deal with estate planning issues for over 34 years. The goal of our Rochester estate planning lawyers when providing services for clients is to ensure that their wishes are met, while also ensuring their estate pays as little tax as possible upon their death.

Some things to bear in mind when you’re planning your future – and the inevitable end of your life.

Have a will drawn up – and when you do make sure that you get a competent estate lawyer to draft it as the smallest mistake can make the will invalid. If you need to have a will drafted, we offer a basic will for $79.
Trusts are a very effective way to ensure that your property is held on your behalf, but not directly by you.
There are many types of trusts – Express Trusts, Incentive Trusts and Discretionary Trusts.
The law concerning estate planning and tax exemptions is constantly changing. There are also local variations between individual states which make local representation very important.
Most of us will become incapacitated at some stage in our lives. And should this happen, you may want to think about having one of our attorneys handle your financial affairs.

We ensure that your golden years are as prosperous as possible – and if you wish to take care of your heirs, we’ll make that happen as well.

Our Rochester Estate Planning Lawyers can help you or a loved one in the following:

Administering estates and trusts
Advanced Directives
Annuities
Article 81 Guardianships
Assisted Living
Contested Accountings
Contesting a Will
Court Representation for Executors, Trustees, Creditors or Beneficiaries
Elder Abuse
Estate & Trust accountings
Estate Administration & Settlement
Estate Litigation – Contested Estates & Trusts
Estate Tax Issues
Estate Sales of Real Estate
Estate Tax Returns and Audits

Government Benefits
Guardianships for Disabled Children
Health Care Proxies
Intestacy (dying without a will)
Invalidating trusts
Kinship proceedings (Establishing Heirs)
Life Estates
Life Insurance Trusts
Living Trusts
Living Wills
Long Term Care Insurance
Medicaid Planning
Medicare
Nursing Home Care
Power of Attorney
Family Partnerships, LLCs and Business Succession Planning

Probating wills – simple to complex
Representation of executors & trustees
Representation of Out-of-State Beneficiaries
Retirement Planning
Reverse Mortgages
Revocable Living Trusts
Social Security Disability
Special Needs Trusts
Supplemental Needs Trusts
Spousal inheritance disputes
SSI
Surrogate’s Court Litigation
VA Aid and Attendance
Wills
Wrongful Death Proceedings

Our Rochester Estate Planning Lawyers also represent Estates in the following manner:

Legal Guidance for Administrators
Legal Guidance for Executors

Serve as Executor for your Estate
Serve as Trustee for your Estate

Effective Rochester Estate Planning Lawyers

The main goal of estate planning is to ensure that your assets are transferred to your loved-ones with the least amount of legal fees, taxes, and court costs as possible. With several decades of combined experience, our attorneys know how to make this happen.

If you or a loved one needs to start planning what to do with their estate, contact Friedman & Ranzenhofer for dedicated representation. Let our experience work for you.