Blog - Michael Bailey Law, LLC

From Grinch to Gratitude: Estate Planning That Reflects Your Wishes and Your Heart

Attorneys aren’t exactly known for being the warmest, most caring and wonderful people on the planet. Attorneys might even be described as being a little bit like the Grinch from Dr. Seuss’s story “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” whose heart was two sizes too small. The Grinch is miserable and hates the Christmas holiday, and sometimes attorneys … [Read more...]

How to Start a Family Conversation About Estate Planning

Most families that I know don’t really want to have a conversation about estate planning, or death, or dying, or any of those unpleasant subjects. And, most families that I know don’t want to have a conversation about family finances and the family financial situation. I have found this to be especially true of older parents or grandparents. My … [Read more...]

When People Ask What My Life Meant, Tell Them This

I know many estate planning attorneys who will sell their services by telling potential clients that they want to “Leave a Legacy” or “Preserve a Legacy” for their descendants. I understand what these attorneys are saying, but I sometimes question if it is really a “legacy” that is being left in an estate plan. A person’s legacy doesn’t always … [Read more...]

Planning Before The Emotional Impact of a Death

I often discuss the virtue of planning ahead, so that you are not stuck with the default rules about who gets assets after you pass away. Many of what I discuss focuses on how you may want different things to happen with your assets than the default rules set up by the Colorado legislature, but there is a lot more to consider when death arrives … [Read more...]

Why It Is Important To Not Rush Your Will

I recently found out that August is national make your will month. I did not know that was a thing until recently, but now I know. I am not going to tell you to get your will done this month, as that would be silly and definitely be rushing things, and we don’t want to rush! The ten-time national championship and all-time great UCLA … [Read more...]

How to Move Into A Care Facility Without Losing Your Mind or Your Money

My oldest daughter just became licensed as a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) this summer, as she needed to find a way to get work experience in the medical field, and she wants to become a doctor. She found her first job working as a CNA doing overnight shifts at a memory care facility. She mostly keeps track of the people and guides them back … [Read more...]

Why You Need to Periodically Check Your Beneficiary Designations

When I was in law school, we read a lot of court cases, but we rarely read cases about what went right. Instead, we read cases where something went wrong. This was true concerning wills and the cases concerning estate plans. We didn’t read court cases about how there were no disputes or disagreements, but rather we read about things that went … [Read more...]

Making Your Estate Plan and Life Insurance Work Together

Almost every time I meet with someone to discuss their estate plan, I get questions about what happens with different types of assets, and almost always people want to know what controls who gets an asset. This leads to a discussion of how things can be transferred: via joint ownership, beneficiary designation, the dictates of a will, or the … [Read more...]

Why Yes, You Do NEED a Medical and Financial Power of Attorney

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard people tell me that they already have a will, so they are all set. I understand why those who tell me this may think it is true, but I do not completely agree. A will is only effective once you pass away, and only gives someone power to handle your assets and transfer assets to your named … [Read more...]

Yes, You Need a Will, but is That the ONLY Thing You Need?

I take a lot of calls from people who want to tell me about their wills. They will talk about how their will does one thing or another, but often they are mixing and matching the will with other estate planning documents. I suspect many times people keep all their estate planning documents together in one folder, binder, or location, and that … [Read more...]