I’ve been asked a lot over the past few weeks what type of law I practice at my new firm. When I respond that we are a boutique estate planning and business litigation firm, I’ve often been getting the same general response: “Awesome! Well I don’t have an estate but I’ll let you know if I have any litigation needs.”
But after a few more minutes of conversation, most people are surprised to learn that estate planning isn’t just something rich people do. In fact, nearly everyone has an estate. It’s comprised of everything you own— your car, home, other real estate, checking and savings accounts, investments, life insurance, furniture, personal possessions. Stated differently, an “estate” is just a fancy term for your “stuff.”
So no matter how large or how modest, everyone has an estate. And because none of us can take any of our stuff with us when we die, we all need some sort of estate plan.