Estate Planning is a proactive process that begins with your life and continues after your death. Our commitment is to you and your family. We will provide you with the same vigor and standard of care we provide for our own families and friends. That is our mission.
Our personalized planning process emphasizes education and implementation. We believe that education is paramount to understanding and developing the perfect plan for your family. Our approach is a four-step process:
- Initial Consultation
- Design Meeting
- Initial Consultation
- Signing Ceremony
- Lifetime Maintenance
To schedule a consultation, please call our San Francisco office at 415.398.7275. If you are unable to meet with us at our offices during business hours, we will do our best to make arrangements for you and your family.
We hold the highest standard of client services. Confidentiality and loyalty are pillars of our firm. Please feel free to discuss any questions or concerns you may have with us.
1. Initial Consultation: Proactive Planning
Our correspondence with you begins with the information we request before our first meeting. Our Confidential Data Form requests in-depth information about your family dynamics and family assets. A thorough examination of this information is necessary to create a personal and effective estate plan. By returning a completed Confidential Data Form prior to your Design Meeting, we can discuss the specific recommendations we have for you and your family.
2. Design Meeting: Crafting Your Perfect Plan
The following are the four tenets to our design meetings:
- INFORM clients on estate and tax planning advantages
- IDENTIFY clients' personal and family goals
- INTEGRATE clients' vision into estate planning documents
- IGNITE excitement for proactive planning and the future
These tenets will help us design a plan that is perfect for you and your family. We will spend time on what you envision for the future, including how your assets will pass to your designated loved ones and who will manage your assets for them. We can discuss everything, from guardian and trustee instructions, to incapacity provisions and business succession strategies.
3. Signing Ceremony: Understanding What You Sign
Approximately four to six weeks after your Design Meeting, we will meet with you to review the completed estate planning documents. In this meeting, our goal is for you to feel comfortable with your estate planning documents. At the end of this meeting, you will formally sign your estate planning documents.
Thereafter, we will provide you with:
- An original copy of your estate planning documents
- A copy of your estate planning documents on a Compact Disc
- A diagram of how your estate plan works for quick reference
4. Lifetime Maintenance: Often Overlooked
Lifetime maintenance of estate planning documents is more important than most people think. It involves Implementing Your Estate Plan and providing your loved ones with the information, guidance, and resources that they need when you are unavailable.
Lifetime maintenance may involve periodic reviews and amendments to keep your estate plan up-to-date according to changes in your family dynamics and wealth. For example, when a child comes into your life, you should take the responsibility to proactively provide for him or her into your estate plan. Also, when you want to sell your business, you should take the time to plan how and when to sell.
We are always available to discuss the changes in your plan, your vision and your family. Please feel free to take advantage of the related educational seminars.
