Estate Planning Attorney Services

Prescott Jamieson Murphy Law Group can help you navigate the probate process to ensure that assets are distributed according to Maine law and/or the terms of a will or trust.

An “intestate” estate is the estate of someone who died without a will. Contrary to popular belief, a person’s estate does not “go to the state” if they die without a will. The Maine Probate Code controls who is put in charge of the decedent’s estate and how the decedent’s property is divided. Attorney Joyce Leary Clark helps clients work through the process of having a personal representative or executor appointed, and advise them how to handle the estate.

A “testate” estate is the estate of someone who dies with a valid will. Even if a decedent dies leaving a will, usually their estate will need to be probated. Attorney Joyce Leary Clark can help the Personal Representative nominated in a will file the appropriate documents with the probate court to be approved as Personal Representative, and advise them on their powers and duties.

It can be very helpful to execute a Durable Financial Power of Attorney, appointing someone as your agent to handle your finances (usually if you are unable to handle them yourself.) Creating a power of attorney can save clients a great deal of time and money. In the event someone is disabled and has not executed a power of attorney naming someone as their agent to handle their finances – paying their bills, filing taxes, dealing with insurance companies, etc. – someone may need to file a petition to be appointed as Guardian and/or Conservator of the disabled person. This process can be time-consuming, and cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. Attorney Clark usually recommends that clients execute Durable Financial Powers of Attorney when they are executing their wills.

An Advance Health Care Directive is a document that enables someone to appoint an agent to make medical decisions for them, and to access medical records if needed. This document can be customized to fit the needs of the client. Some clients simply choose an agent to make medical decisions for them. Other clients choose to specify whether they wish to have “living will” provisions (instructing their health care provider to withhold or terminate life-sustaining treatment if their health condition is severe or irreversible.)