Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois
My mother is a widow and I am her only child. She intends to have 100% of her estate go to me upon her death (she does not have any other immediate family in the United States). What steps do we need to take to ensure that all of her properties (home, bank accounts, etc.) will be given to me and that the transition of this ownership to my name will be as smooth as possible? Thank you.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Encourage your mother to make an appointment with an attorney who focuses in estate planning. Her needs would be dependent upon the size and complexity of her assets. I would be happy to talk with her or you for no charge.
Since you may be the sole beneficiary of your mother's assets, your mother's attorney may ask you to distance yourself from their meetings. In doing so, the attorney may be trying to minimize the likelihood of lawsuits that could be brought by others after your mother's death. You see, if a beneficiary of a Will is actively involved in the preparation of a Will, a Court could negate any gift to that beneficiary under certain circumstances. Of course, whether this is necessary would vary from case to case.
I look forward to hearing from your mother or you.
Since you are her only child, under the law you are her only heir (unless she has a deceased child with descendants). Assuming she is the sole owner of all of her assets, she doesn't need to do anything if all she wants to do is make sure all of her assets go to you.
However, your second goal, making sure the transition is smooth, does require some planning. A proper estate plan will avoid probate so that the transition of your mother's assets to you will be seamless. This usually involves the use of a very popular document called a living trust.
I respectfully disagree with Mr. Raminiak's post in one respect: I am not concerned about your involvment in the planning process as long as your mother is OK with it. If you had siblings that your mother was going to disinherit in your favor then I would support his cautionary words. But as the sole heir, you are as we say, the natural object of her bounty.
If you would like a free consultation please visit me at www.legacylaws.com.
Be well.