Estate Planning And Administration: Guiding You And Your Loved Ones Through Loss

With more than a century of combined experience, our Fulton-based firm helps clients preserve their wealth and protect the people who matter most. We develop comprehensive estate plans that safeguard assets, minimize unnecessary taxes, and employ effective nonprobate transfers to ensure that your resources pass efficiently to your beneficiaries. By working closely with our knowledgeable estate planning attorneys, families can establish customized strategies that uphold their legacy, provide long-term peace of mind, and avoid unnecessary probate costs and taxes.

Key Tools for a Comprehensive Estate Plan

A well-crafted estate plan can include a range of tools, each designed to protect your assets and provide peace of mind for you and your family. Most require the guidance of experienced attorneys who can skillfully draft and coordinate the necessary documents to ensure your plan reflects your full range of options.

• Common components of an estate plan include:
• Trusts (whether revocable or irrevocable)
• Wills
• Durable Powers of Attorney
• Advance health care directives and Powers of Attorney
• Beneficiary Deeds
• Advanced estate planning techniques such as Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts, Charitable Trusts, Family Limited Partnerships, and other sophisticated tools for larger estates

At Riley Brazas, our attorneys have drafted thousands of estate plans from simple to complex. Thomas K. Riley and Jacque Brazas have both lectured on estate planning and Riley drafted the first article on the Missouri Uniform Trust Code for the Journal of the Missouri Bar.

We assist clients with business succession strategies, tax-efficient asset transfers, and comprehensive planning for large estates with diverse holdings. Whether you need to establish a new plan or modify an existing one, we focus on minimizing estate taxes, avoiding probate, and ensuring your wishes are carried out with precision and care.

Estate Administration and Probate Litigation

Riley Brazas provides trusted counsel to executors, trustees, and families throughout the estate administration process. Our attorneys ensure that every aspect of the decedent’s estate is managed efficiently, lawfully, and in accordance with their expressed intentions.

When disputes arise, our firm represents clients on all sides of contested matters. We have extensive experience in will and trust contests, declaratory judgment actions, accountings, and other inheritance-related litigation. Whether advocating for the estate or for an individual beneficiary, our team is committed to resolving disputes with professionalism, discretion, and a clear focus on protecting our clients’ rights and interests. The best way to avoid such disputes for yourself and your family, however, is to engage in forward-thinking, practical, and clear estate planning while you can still decide how your estate will be handled to see that disputes do not arise.