800.999.1109 - Aviation Insurance & Risk Management Magazine

• Read Your Will – When is the last time you actually read your
will, front to back? You should do this at least once a year. Set this
task up as a recurring appointment on your calendar, and treat it as
one of your most important appointments of the year. If something
does not look right or you have questions, call your attorney. If your
attorney does not answer your questions sufficiently, consult with another
attorney. Which brings up a very important point: Make sure the
aattorney
you depend on for this service specializes in the area of wills and
es estates. You should meet with your estate attorney every three to five years
to re review the will and discuss any changes you may have in your life, as well
as any
changes in the law.
• Is Your Estate Protected? – When people think about a will, they think about
who will benefit and what they should receive. A factor many overlook is the exclusion of those whom you do not
want to benefit. A few examples are excluding certain family members (Michael Jackson excluded his father from
his estate), former spouses and stepchildren, business partners, creditors, or anyone else who may try to claim a
portion of your estate. Be sure your will is clear about who should benefit and who should not benefit.
• Business Continuation Planning – Are you part owner of a business? How will the portion of the business
you own be settled with your heirs? Do you have a Buy-Sell agreement in place? When was the last time
the agreement was reviewed? When was the last time you made a determination that the proper funding, usually
life insurance, was adequate? As your business changes, you must determine the company’s worth, which will
determine if additional funding is needed for the Buy-Sell agreement. A good time to review this document and
determine proper funding is at the same time you are reviewing your will. Lack of an annual review could leave
your family receiving a smaller portion of the business than was originally intended.
• Pay Taxes, Again? – The amount of taxes an estate must pay to the government can be a very large percentage
of the estate. In addition to estate tax, some states have an inheritance tax. You’ve already paid taxes on most
of the dollars you’ve earned; are you willing to allow your estate to pay taxes on these dollars AGAIN, at rates that
are usually higher than your income tax rate? How are you going to reduce the taxes your estate will pay? Have you
thought about leaving a contribution to a foundation, school, or charity? There are ways to make a large donation
to these types of organizations and reduce your estate tax liability, without reducing the estate left to your family.
• Life Insurance – Do you have any? Do you have enough? How did you determine the amount of life insurance
you purchased? Have you factored the amount you need into your estate planning? Many people think of life
insurance as assets that will flow into the estate after their death, which will then be paid to their heirs. However,
life insurance can be used to accomplish many different things in estate planning. Have you thought of life insurance
as providing a way to pay your estate taxes? What about as a replacement for assets you donate to a charity?
These are just two of the many ways life insurance proceeds can be used in your estate plan.
There are many things that can be done so your estate is handled in the manner you want. However, it will take
some planning and annual review to make sure your will continues to work in the manner you intended. Putting
this process off until “tomorrow” could put your family in jeopardy of losing assets you have worked very hard to
obtain. Step #1: Set the first annual appointment on your calendar now to review your will and Buy-Sell agreement.
If you do not have a team to handle these complex issues, we can help you build your team. Let’s discuss what
you can do today to protect your family tomorrow. �
20 | Aviation Insurance & Risk Management