There are a variety of components to estate planning.
One area concerns Joint and Survivorship Deeds or a Transfer on Death affidavit, which is recommended for people in a first marriage or single people with a home as the largest asset they own.
Examining that documentation has become a project of new Summit County Probate Court Judge Todd McKenney.
But David Woodburn, former probate chair for the Akron Bar Association, says it’s also important to consider wills and other estate topics. Woodburn is an attorney with Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs LLP.
Readers may recall that I consulted with Woodburn in July 2010 for a series of stories and columns on important documents everyone needs to have before they die. I’m going to go over some of the details from those stories below, but because of space constraints, I can’t go into lots of details. We’ve put all of those stories online so you can read them in their entirety as well as my report last week on McKenney’s community deed project at www.ohio.com/betty.
The documents McKenney suggests are good, Woodburn said. They are, however, “not a replacement of a will, but a companion tool.
“You would still have other assets that could go through probate — personal property and bank accounts,” he said.
McKenney agrees. “My view of the will is it’s more like a backstop in baseball. As we do this kind of planning, my hope is I don’t have to use the will. It’s more expensive to have the lawyer. If I have to use the will, that means I’ve got a probate estate and that’s more expensive. If you do it right, nothing will go to probate. Do I still need a will? Yeah.”
As an example in the case of spouses, ownership of two cars under a combined value of $40,000 can pass outside of probate, McKenney said. If a car or cars are titled only in one name, at that person’s death, Ohio law allows the surviving spouse to transfer up to two cars without transfer on death paperwork. If cars are titled in both names, there is no issue. A single person would need a Transfer on Death notation, which costs about $15 at the title bureau, to transfer the car to someone else without going to probate.
If bank accounts are only in one name, you need to have a Payable on Death notation to leave it to someone else. If not, it will head to probate, McKenney said.
Here are three documents Woodburn says everyone should have and a fourth that is optional:
• A will: Everyone should have a will. Wills can be drawn up by a lawyer or written on a piece of paper. There are documents online from nonprofits and universities. It’s important they are filled out and witnessed properly, Woodburn said.
• A general power of attorney: With this, you designate an agent to handle your legal and financial matters. A power of attorney gives someone the authority to write checks or pay bills if you are incapacitated. Without it, someone has to file with a court for legal guardianship. There are major changes coming to the Power of Attorney laws on March 22, which would significantly change documents filed after that date, so that’s more reason to do it now. The power-of-attorney form from the Ohio Revised Code is online at http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/1337.18 and can be used until March 21.
• A health-care power of attorney: This names an agent to make medical decisions for you if or when needed. Give a copy to your agent (typically a spouse) or alternate ahead of time, in addition to a living will, if you have one. This is online at http://medicalcenter.osu.edu/pdfs/hospitalsandservices/OH_PowerOfAttorney.pdf.
• Living will: If you feel strongly about not being placed on medical life support, then a living will is the fourth and optional document. The living will would take the decision off relatives and rely solely on medical assessments of two physicians to take you off life support if you are in a permanently unconscious state. It can be found online at http://medicalcenter.osu.edu/pdfs/hospitalsandservices/OH_LivingWill.pdf.
Betty Lin-Fisher can be reached at 330-996-3724 or blinfisher@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/blinfisher and see all her stories at www.ohio.com/betty.
