Call us at
313-774-2787
Call us at
313-774-2787
Estate Planning Attorneys | Michigan and california
Don’t Leave Your Legacy in a Judge’s Hands.
Save 20% of your estate, provide for your loved ones, and gain peace of mind.
Estate Planning Attorneys
Michigan and california
Don’t Leave Your Legacy in a Judge’s Hands.
Save 20% of your estate, provide for your loved ones, and gain peace of mind.
Estate Planning is an important process that involves making decisions about how your assets will be distributed after your death, as well as how to manage your affairs if you become incapacitated.
Estate Planning allows you to decide how your assets will be distributed after your death. Without a Will or Trust, state laws (intestacy laws) will determine how your property is divided, which may not align with your wishes.
Probate is the legal process of distributing your assets after death, and it can be time-consuming and expensive. Proper Estate Planning helps you avoid or minimize court through the use of Trusts and other Estate Planning tools.
Effective Estate Planning helps reduce estate and gift taxes, ensuring that more of your estate goes to your beneficiaries rather than to the government.
Estate Planning helps you provide for minors or other dependents who may need special care or financial protection. You appoint guardians and set up Trusts to manage the inheritance for them.
Estate Planning includes setting up documents such as a Durable Power of Attorney and a Healthcare Power of Attorney to appoint trusted individuals to manage your affairs and make healthcare decisions if you become incapacitated.
A well-thought-out Estate Plan helps prevent disputes among family members by clearly outlining your wishes and how your assets should be distributed.
If you wish to leave a legacy to a favorite charity or cause, Estate Planning allows you to do so efficiently and in accordance with your wishes.
Knowing that you have a plan in place for your loved ones and your assets can provide peace of mind and security for both you and your family.
Estate Planning is important for everyone, but certain groups of people may face more immediate or complex needs when it comes to planning their estates. Here are six groups of people who are often in most need of Estate Planning:
Parents want to ensure their children are cared for if something happens to them. Estate Planning allows them to name guardians, set up Trusts for financial management, and provide clear instructions for their children's care.
Business owners need to plan for the future of their businesses, including succession planning and the potential impact on their personal estate. Proper planning can help avoid disruptions and financial difficulties for heirs.
Those who own assets, such as real estate, investments, or valuable personal property, should have a comprehensive Estate Plan to manage taxes, avoid court, and protect and distribute assets according to their wishes.
Those who care for a family member with special needs must plan carefully to ensure the dependent is provided for without jeopardizing their eligibility for government benefits.
Individuals in blended families may face complex family dynamics that make Estate Planning essential to ensure assets are distributed fairly and according to their wishes.
Older individuals and those with serious health concerns need Estate Planning to address end-of-life issues, healthcare directives, and the distribution of their assets.
At LADIES IN LAW®, we are committed to providing exceptional legal services with compassion, integrity, and expertise. Our promise to you, our valued client, is to listen attentively, understand your unique needs, and offer personalized solutions that protect your interests and achieve your goals. We strive to make the legal process as smooth and stress-free as possible, ensuring clear communication, transparency, and dedicated support every step of the way. Trust LADIES IN LAW® to be your steadfast advocate, working diligently to uphold your rights and provide the peace of mind you deserve.
Unlike other law firms, we ONLY do Estate Planning.
Hi, I’m Jazzy Rippy, and I’ve been practicing law for a decade. My journey as a lawyer started in a large firm where I saw first-hand the heartaches and disappointments families endured in court.
I remember the look of despair on the faces of grieving family members as they realized how long it would take to settle their loved one’s estate, and how much of it would be consumed by fees and taxes.
One case that stands out involved a woman who had a Will, but it was outdated and didn’t account for her most recent marriage. As a result, her children from her first marriage and her new husband were embroiled in a bitter dispute over her estate. The drawn-out legal battle drained them both emotionally and financially.
Another case involved a successful entrepreneur who had established a Living Trust, but it was riddled with ambiguities. His adult children fought over the interpretation of the Trust’s language, ultimately leading to a costly and contentious probate battle.
These experiences, and many more, made me realize that even when people had Wills or Trusts, they were often not well-drafted or comprehensive enough to avoid probate and the associated pain. I knew there had to be a better way to protect families and honor the wishes of their loved ones.
That’s when I teamed up with Ameena Sheikh, a talented and compassionate Estate Planning attorney. Together, we founded a law firm dedicated to preventing probate court and the pain that so many go through without carefully crafted Estate Plans. Our mission is to provide personalized, thoughtful, and proactive Estate Planning services that ensure our clients’ wishes are clearly documented and legally sound.
At our firm, we take the time to get to know each client’s unique situation, goals, and concerns. We craft Estate Plans that address their needs, from simple Wills to complex Trusts, and ensure they are regularly updated to reflect changes in their lives. We also educate our clients about the importance of planning for incapacity, so they can appoint trusted individuals to manage their affairs if they are unable to do so.
By focusing on prevention rather than reaction, Ameena and I believe we can spare our clients and their families the heartache and stress of probate court. It’s been an incredibly rewarding journey, and I’m grateful every day for the opportunity to make a positive impact on people’s lives.
Our experienced attorneys provide a safe space for Michigan and California residents to talk about the challenges and realities of Estate Planning and Will creation.
Discuss your family dynamics to help us understand the big picture.
Learn about the Estate Planning process and the decisions you'll need to make. Select the right plan for you - whether that's a power of attorney package, a simple Will, or a complex Trust.
Our seasoned attorneys provide a safe space for Michigan residents to talk about the challenges and realities of Estate Planning and Will creation. We take a compassion-first approach so you leave feeling confident, informed, and in control of your future.
A Legacy Plan is the name for our custom tailored Estate Plans created for you by LADIES IN LAW®.
It depends on your unique situation. Generally, everyone needs a Will, Medical Power of Attorney, and Financial Power of Attorney.
Yes, we draft many joint Trusts for spouses.
In your personalized Legacy Plan, you can be as specific or generalized as you’d like.
A Power of Attorney is a legal document where you give someone you trust authority to make critical decisions about your medical care or finances if you are unable to. For example, if you fall seriously ill and lose consciousness, your Medical Power of Attorney will decide what treatment you receive, including life-sustaining procedures. On the other hand, if you are bed bound and cannot make it to the bank, your Financial Power of Attorney can act for you.
With a Trust you:
You should store your original Legacy Planning documents in a safe place, such as a safe deposit box. You should also make hard and digital copies to provide to your loved ones.
Yes, you can. With our packages, we offer you an opportunity to sign up for our Maintenance Plan to keep your documents updated for a nominal fee.
Your Legacy Planning documents need to be updated whenever major life changes occur, such as marriage, divorce, retirement, birth of a new child, or receiving a large inheritance. It is good to occasionally review your documents to make sure they reflect your current wishes and circumstances.
Probate is the legal process that your loved ones will go through after you pass in order to inherit your assets. If you have a Will, the probate process is much easier. If you do not have a Will, the judge, under Michigan law, decides where your assets go. The average length of a probate case is 9 months to 2 years, with the average cost totaling from 5 to 10% of the value of your estate. However, it can drag out much longer and deplete your estate if you do not have proper Legacy Planning in place.
A Trust is the single best way for your family to avoid Court and all the headache associated with it.
A Living Trust is a legal entity that you transfer property into while you’re alive and give instructions on how it is to be distributed after you pass. With a Living Trust, you own, manage, and receive all of its benefits during your lifetime. After you pass away, your loved ones will inherit your assets according to your wishes listed out in the Living Trust. Importantly, your property avoids probate court and prevents your loved ones from fighting over it.
Your Legacy Plan includes all of your personal belongings, furniture, jewelry, homes, cars, businesses, bank accounts, retirement accounts, stocks, bonds, and life insurance policies.
Legacy Planning, also known as Estate Planning, provides asset protection for your property. It also enables you to build generational wealth, care for your loved ones, and ensure your wishes are carried out after you pass. With a Legacy Plan, you set your children up for their future and may be able to protect your assets from future lawsuits.
With a Living Trust, we suggest having a specialty Will that is connected to your Living Trust, called a “Pour-Over Will”. This ensures that if any assets don’t make it into your Trust, they will still be distributed according to your wishes set forth in your Trust. Also, in a Will but not a Trust, you nominate guardians and conservators for your minor children and dependents.
In your Legacy Plan, you choose who you want to be the guardian and conservator of your child if something happens to you. You also determine how their inheritance will be used for their benefit and security. In sum, a Legacy Plan ensures your children will be cared for properly, both emotionally and financially.
Estate Planning: Wills, Trusts, and Powers of Attorney.
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