Ronald’s estate plan is a Facebook status stating that Facebook has no permission to use his possessions, his image or his remains. He has instructed everyone to copy and paste it. Jennifer has asked whether a lawyer has reviewed it. Ronald replied with a photograph of an eagle.
The family is now trying to determine whether ‘Linda gets the good tools’ refers to his daughter, his first wife or the woman who sold him a riding mower in 2004. Ronald has told them to use common sense. This is a family in which two members are currently not speaking because someone borrowed a casserole lid.
Different documents do different jobs
An estate plan may include a will, beneficiary designations, financial authority for incapacity and health-care instructions. These are not interchangeable. A trusted person also needs to know where the documents are. Applicable law and the details of your property determine what works, so have a qualified attorney in your state review the plan.
Ronald has designated Kevin the executor because Kevin once successfully returned a pressure washer. Kevin has been surprised to learn that a calm manner at the customer-service counter does not automatically prepare him for a family argument over the coin jars.
Somewhere safe should have coordinates
The location of the documents is currently described as ‘where I keep important things.’ That location has previously included the freezer, a fishing-tackle box and the glove compartment of a car he no longer owns. Last Word Memorials proposes the radical administrative reform of telling someone.
Keep beneficiary information current, review the plan when circumstances change and make access practical for the person who will need it. Do not post account numbers, passwords or sensitive documents in a public thread. The nephew who comments a padlock emoji is not providing encryption.
An engraved grievance is an excellent monument. It is a poor substitute for executable instructions.
Final arrangements deserve their own conversation, including which portrait belongs in the round waterproof frame and who will maintain its replacement subscription. Ronald has chosen the photograph of himself objecting to a self-checkout machine. Jennifer has requested the picture from the lake. The original scowl preservation charter has resolved the matter in Ronald’s favor, which has only strengthened his confidence in paperwork.