Legacy Family Considerations
How people leave their wealth often says more about who they are (were) than how they used their wealth during their lifetime.
- If you were examining your family 20 years after your passing, what has to have happened in order for you to be happy with your planning?
- What is the purpose of your wealth?
- How do you keep your wealth from poisoning your worth?
- How will your wealth be used to increase the human, social, and intellectual capital of your family?
- How much is enough? For you? For your family?
- What do you want to guarantee to you, and then to your children?
- What capital will it take to guarantee what you need?
- What capital will it take to guarantee what your children are to receive?
- What do you really want for your children and grandchildren?
- How do you provide tools instead of toys?
- What do your children (grandchildren) really want for themselves?
- How can you empower children to reach their dreams?
- Are you in agreement with your partner regarding family planning options?
- Do you have a coordinated brain trust of multidisciplinary advisors?
- Do your advisors provide qualitative and quantitative data?
- Are equal and fair always the same in inheritance matters?
- Are family members entitled to greater ownership of the family business because of being family members?
- How will you deal with shared assets?
- How will you protect assets from creditors and divorce?
- If there were no estate tax, what would you leave to your family?
- Does your estate plan reinforce core values you esteem, or does it just deal with the stuff?
- Will your plan encourage your children to acquire their own wealth or just consume yours? (Are you pumping out too much too early?)
- Will the date of your death become the date of your heirs retirement?
- Are the chosen trustees qualified and prepared: financially? Emotionally? And do they have the time required to manage and complete your plan?
- Are your wishes and intents clearly documented?
- Will the choice of a trustee help to bind or to disrupt the family? (Might it be better to have a non family member, or institution, serve as trustee?)
- Are you giving lifetime gifts that create opportunities, but don’t remove challenges?
- Are you considering transfers at death that reward effort and accomplishment?
