Are you looking for an estate planning lawyer in Shreveport, LA?
At Theus Law Offices, we have built an estate planning practice with 29 years of advising families across Shreveport.
If you are planning your estate in Shreveport, a sound plan sets out who will inherit your property and who will make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to do so. Careful planning keeps your family out of avoidable disputes and can shorten the court process after a death. Our Shreveport, LA estate planning lawyer prepares wills, trusts, and directives that fit your circumstances and hold up under Louisiana law. Theus Law Offices has guided families through estate planning for 29 years from offices across the state, including Shreveport. Reach out to schedule a consultation with our attorneys.
Estate Planning Lawyer Shreveport, LA
Estate planning means putting your intentions on paper so that others can follow them once you no longer can. The work involves a set of documents that operate together. A will and one or more trusts direct where your assets go after death. Powers of attorney and health care directives cover the period when you are alive but unable to manage your own affairs.
Louisiana follows a civil law tradition that sets its inheritance rules apart from most of the country. A large share of what a married person owns is community property, so a spouse already holds a claim to half, and a plan has to work within that limit. The state also recognizes forced heirship, which can guarantee a portion of an estate to children under a certain age or to those who cannot support themselves. When a person dies, the estate is settled through a proceeding the state calls a succession. A Shreveport estate planning attorney accounts for each of these features so your plan carries out what you actually intend.
Types of Estate Planning Services We Handle in Shreveport
We draft every document an estate plan calls for and shape each one around what you own and whom you want to protect. A younger client with a growing family has different priorities than a retiree or a business owner. Our estate planning lawyers in Shreveport prepare plans for all of these situations.
- Wills. A will tells the court how you want your property distributed and names the executor who will see it through. For parents, it is also where a guardian for minor children is named. Louisiana applies particular rules to how a will is signed and witnessed, and we make sure yours meets them.
- Trusts. A trust places property under a trustee’s management for the benefit of the people you name. A revocable trust leaves you in control during your lifetime, while an irrevocable trust can shield assets or reduce tax exposure. We match the structure to what you want it to accomplish.
- Succession. Careful planning now can ease the succession your family goes through later. When a succession does become necessary, we open it, prepare the filings, and see it through the court.
- Probate. Confirming a will and granting the executor authority to act both run through the court. We handle those steps and keep the estate moving without missteps.
- Ancillary probate. A person who lived in another state but owned Louisiana property usually needs a separate proceeding here. We manage ancillary probate so an out-of-state executor can transfer that property.
- Powers of attorney. If an accident or illness leaves you unable to handle your own affairs, a power of attorney puts a person you trust in charge rather than leaving the decision to a court. We draft durable versions made to stay effective even after you lose capacity.
- Living wills and health care directives. These documents speak for you when you cannot speak for yourself. A living will records which treatments you would accept or refuse, and a health care power of attorney puts someone you choose in charge of medical decisions. Having both keeps difficult choices from falling on your family without direction.
- Elder law. Retirement introduces a new set of planning concerns. Later in life the focus often shifts to covering the cost of care and to protecting a spouse who still lives on their own, and we bring those questions into the same plan.
- Medicaid. A single stretch of nursing care can consume a lifetime of savings, and Medicaid weighs income and assets closely before it pays. Planning ahead can protect part of what you have built while keeping eligibility within reach.
Shreveport Estate Planning Infographic
Why Choose Theus Law Offices as My Estate Planning Lawyer in Shreveport, LA?
The value of an estate plan rests on the attorney who prepares it. A Shreveport, LA estate planning lawyer at our firm brings the credentials, the knowledge of Louisiana law, and the years of experience that estate planning requires.
Board-Certified Experience You Can Rely On
Few Louisiana attorneys hold board certification in even one specialty. J. Graves Theus, Jr., the firm’s managing partner, holds two, recognized by the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization in Estate Planning and Administration and in Tax Law. That tax background is directly relevant to estate planning, where the two fields frequently overlap. He studied taxation at the graduate level at Boston University and earned his law degree with honors from Gonzaga University. Clay Wirtz and Patricia L. Barfield, both managing attorneys, practice in estate planning as well.
A Track Record With Louisiana Families
In close to thirty years of practice, we have drawn up plans for Louisiana families at every stage, from first-time parents to retirees organizing their affairs. Estate planning is typically billed at a flat rate rather than by the hour. You can begin with a free 15-minute consultation, and the firm also holds free workshops and webinars, in person and online, for people who want to understand their options first.
Understanding Estate Planning in Shreveport
Key Estate Planning Documents and What They Do
A handful of documents do most of the work in an estate plan, and each serves a distinct purpose.
- A revocable trust can hold your property while you are alive and pass it to your beneficiaries without a succession, and you remain free to change it whenever you like.
- An irrevocable trust asks you to give up a measure of control, and in return it can protect assets or reduce taxes in ways a revocable trust cannot.
- A will directs where your property goes and appoints the person who will carry out those instructions. It forms the foundation of most estate plans.
- A power of attorney lets a person you name step in to manage your finances if you no longer can.
- A living will, paired with a health care power of attorney, records your medical wishes and identifies who will voice them for you.
What Are Important Aspects of an Estate Plan?
A plan can look complete and still fall short if a few underlying choices are rushed. Each of them deserves careful thought before the documents are drafted.
- The people you appoint, your executor, your trustee, and your agent, should be dependable, and naming a trustee in particular warrants careful consideration.
- If your children are young, decide early who would raise them, since choosing a guardian is one decision no form can make for you.
- Revisit the plan whenever your life shifts, such as after a marriage, a divorce, a new child, or a move across state lines.
- Resist the temptation to cut corners, since preparing your own documents is a do-it-yourself project that rarely satisfies Louisiana’s rules, and the gaps tend to surface too late.
What Is the Estate Planning Timeline?
From the first meeting to signed documents, a straightforward plan usually takes a few weeks. More involved estates take longer. The order of events is generally the same.
- We start by talking through your goals, your assets, and the people you want to provide for.
- From there, we recommend a specific set of documents and walk you through why each belongs in your plan.
- We prepare the drafts, then give you time to review them and come back with questions.
- You sign, following the witnessing and notarization Louisiana requires for the documents to be valid.
- Finally, we help retitle accounts and property into any trust you create, because an unfunded trust accomplishes nothing.
What Should You Bring to Your Estate Planning Consultation?
Some preparation before the first meeting allows us to give you more focused advice.
- A rough inventory of what you own, from your home and vehicles to bank accounts, retirement funds, and life insurance.
- Anything relevant to a business or partnership you have a stake in.
- Your thoughts on who should serve as executor, trustee, and agent, and who you want to inherit.
- Any estate planning documents you have signed in the past, even if they are out of date.
We will use that meeting to understand your situation, answer what is on your mind, and lay out the documents that fit. By the end, you will know the plan and what it costs.
What Are Important Louisiana Legal Resources for Estate Planning?
A few government resources can help you get your bearings on how Louisiana treats estates and how federal taxes fit in. They are a place to start reading, not a substitute for guidance about your specific circumstances.
- The Louisiana State Legislature hosts the state’s statutes and codes on its Louisiana laws search page.
- The IRS lays out the federal estate tax and the thresholds that bring it into play for larger estates.
- The IRS also addresses the gift tax that can apply to gifts made during your life.
- For anyone administering an estate, the IRS lays out the duties that fall to a deceased person’s representative, including filing the final income tax return.
- The Louisiana Department of Health sets the Medicaid eligibility rules that come into play with long-term care.
Reach Out to Theus Law Offices to Schedule a Consultation
An estate plan is easy to put off, but it works best when it is done ahead of need, without pressure. Our attorneys will review your goals and prepare documents that match your assets and your wishes. Estate planning is usually billed at a flat rate, and a free consultation is where it starts. Contact us to set up a time.
