There are many reasons that people feel comfortable procrastinating about estate planning. Sometimes, they simply feel confident that their loved ones already understand their wishes. Other times, they assume that they have many years of health ahead of them before estate planning becomes necessary.
Unfortunately, a large percentage of adults do not have an estate plan. Not only do they put their families at risk of more challenging probate proceedings, but they may also unintentionally damage the relationships among their loved ones.
The failure to establish an estate plan before dying or having an emergency can do lasting damage to familial relationships. When is a lack of prior planning dangerous for families?
While dealing with grief
The death of a close loved one is challenging for people to address. Siblings may find themselves taking out their intense emotions on one another after a parent dies. They may fight over how to distribute property in accordance with state law.
When someone dies without a will, immediate family members have inheritance rights. However, the process of securing and distributing their property can cause major conflict.
Blended families may also experience disputes related to estate administration that cause permanent damage to family relationships. Children may resent what the state allocates to a stepparent, which could permanently sever their connection.
While addressing an emergency
Without appropriate estate planning documents, families often don’t know how to navigate emergency situations. For example, the adult children of someone who just had a stroke may disagree about what medical preferences their parents have. They may then end up fighting over treatment plans or struggling to allocate responsibility for medical and financial matters.
In a blended family, the spouse of an incapacitated parent might make decisions that damage their relationship with their stepchildren during a medical emergency. Without an estate plan designating a different agent, a spouse might be the only person with the authority to make choices about an individual’s medical care
Taking the time to establish a will, powers of attorney and other estate planning documents can protect people from a variety of different unpredictable circumstances. Proper planning can also help preserve family relationships that could otherwise end up damaged due to conflicts during estate administration or emergencies.
