When scheduling an appointment with your attorney, you should always keep in mind what you are looking to achieve. Are you coming in to discuss your estate plan, asset protection for long-term care or estate administration for your loved one who passed away? While all these areas of law are connected, they also differ from one another. While it is not required for you to bring anything to your initial consultation meeting, it is often helpful for you to bring some of the existing documents along.
Estate Planning Meeting: When you meet with your attorney to discuss your estate plan, first and foremost, your attorney would like to see your prior estate planning documents if you have done some planning in the past. Those documents include but are not limited to any existing Power of Attorney, Health Care Proxy, Living Will, Trust and Last Will and Testament. You should also consider bringing any deed(s) to the real property you own, your property tax bill and sometimes even your personal and business financial records.
Medicaid Planning Meeting: This is similar to an estate planning meeting. You should also bring your prior estate planning documents to your Medicaid planning meeting. This will allow your attorney to better understand what Medicaid planning techniques should be used in your case. Moreover, when it comes to Medicaid planning for yourself or your loved ones, it is important to understand that the financial aspect of Medicaid eligibility depends on two things: (a) your resources and (b) your income. Your resources include your home, your bank accounts, investment accounts, annuities and in some cases your life insurance policies. Therefore, it is helpful if you bring your deed and your most recent statements from your financial institutions. Your income (for purposes of Medicaid) is what you receive on a monthly or yearly basis. For example, your social security, pension, RMD distributions, your work income, etc. Therefore, it may be helpful for you to bring your pension statements, paystubs, and other income statements.
Probate and Estate Administration Meeting: If you come in for a probate consultation, the attorney would need to see the decedent’s Last Will and Testament and the death certificate, because both originals would need to be filed with the court. When it comes to administration, the attorney would only need to get an original death certificate of the decedent. For both consultations, a list of the decedent’s assets and how they were titled will help determine how the proceeding will be handled.
Overall, it is important to note that while it is helpful for your attorney to see the above-listed documents, they are not required to be brought to your first consultation meeting. Do not delay scheduling your appointment because you may think you don’t have enough documents to show. It is always recommended to start the process sooner than later as those documents can be always obtained at a later date.