MASSACHUSETTS CLIENT MAINTENANCE
At Eckert Byrne, we believe that estate planning is not a transactional experience but instead an interactive process. There are many reasons to check-in with your estate plan on a regular basis. As your needs and goals change over your lifetime, your estate plan may need to change as well. Estate Planning laws, taxes and regulations change constantly and may require your documents to be amended.
Below are some circumstances which may require an annual re-examination of your plan:
- Your children have reached legal age and you would like to designate them as your Health Care Agent or Power of Attorney (or would like them to get documents of their own: review our Sapling Plan for young adults!)
- There has been a death or divorce in your family
- An important person in your plan has married, moved, died, etc., resulting in a name or address change
- A shift in family dynamics may result in a change in nominations or distribution amounts
- A shift in family assets may result in a change in distribution amounts
- You have added a new family member (birth or adoption) and want to discuss legal and temporary guardianship options
We offer a variety of options and services to help ensure your plan continues to work for you and your family, including:
ANNUAL MAINTENANCE PROGRAM
For $395/year/user you get:
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A Secure Digital Vault for your documents accessible 24/7.
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Instructional Legacy Worksheets to best capture your specific goals and wishes surrounding healthcare, funeral arrangements, inheritance and family history to pass on your legacy.
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Technical Report on changes in the law and issues that might affect your plan.
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Checklist of personal circumstances that may trigger the need for an update to your plan.
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Annual Reminder to review your flowchart, asset table, technical report, and complete/update your legacy instruction worksheets.
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Peace of mind that your documents are up-to-date and accurately reflect your goals and wishes.
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10% discount for any Legal Check Up work (see below) or additional planning tools.
LEGAL CHECK-UP
Just like you need to check the oil in your car on a regular basis, you need to check in on your estate planning documents to make sure your plan is running as smoothly as possible. Our Legal Check-Up option provides a meeting time for you and your attorney to review your documents, flowchart, and asset table and to discuss changes and/or updates that may be necessary to keep your plan working the way you intended. We find that as time passes, goals and concerns often change, assets shift, and clients benefit from a discussion regarding how to best align their plan.
In order to have an effective meeting, there is some homework that’s involved. Prior to the legal check up meeting, Eckert Byrne will review your flowchart, asset table, and estate planning documents. In addition, we will review for any legal changes that have occurred since you executed your documents, and prepare an agenda for your meeting. Before your Legal Check Up meeting, you will receive your Flowchart, Asset Table, and a secure link to establish a share file vault. We ask that you review your flowchart and Asset Table ahead of the meeting, and note any changes to the flowchart, as well as updates to your assets. You can upload recent bank statements and new asset details to the secure vault ahead of your meeting for Attorney review.
The Attorney will then lead the meeting and provide you ample time to ask questions, discuss changes, and assess whether further services are needed (e.g., amendments, restatements, changes to ancillary documents, changes to beneficiaries, funding, etc.). Some Clients only require the meeting to confirm there are no loose ends to their plan and have peace of mind that their plan is up-to-date. Other Clients wish to make changes to their documents, such as Trustee changes or alterations to distributions, or require advanced planning tools. After your meeting, the Attorney will provide a flat fee quote for additional services (hourly work is atypical but sometimes recommended).
The attorney assigned to your matter is subject to availability and change. Annual maintenance enrollees receive a 10% discount on flat fee services.
FUNDING ASSISTANCE
For assistance with funding your estate plan, we offer a flat-fee solution.
Real Estate (Recorded Land)
$1,00000per property
- Masachussetts Only
- Fee includes registry recording/filing costs.
Real Estate (Registered Land)
$1,05500per property
- Masachussetts Only
- Fee includes registry recording/filing costs.
Beneficiary Designations
$35000per account/policy
- Bank/Investment/Brokerage Accounts (POD/TOD)
- Life Insurance (Premium & Contingent)
- Retirement Accounts/Annuities
Account Ownership Change
$35000per account
- Bank/Investment/Brokerage Account