Estate Planning and Probate

Since 1975, the law firm of Holt Legal Group has assisted clients throughout Hamilton County with all of their estate planning needs. Our attorneys tailor representation to your individual needs and goals, with careful consideration of any possible tax consequences.

At Holt Legal Group, we offer sensitive estate planning assistance that is individually tailored to your unique needs, the needs of your family, and your long-term goals. We will help you arrange for the transfer of your property and assets as effectively as possible considering the nature and amount of your estate and any likely tax consequences.

Our attorneys can assist you in planning for all of the issues that arise as you continue to get older, including planning for potential incapacity and long-term care. We can help you plan for the preservation and distribution of your assets, as well as for your future health and medical care. For example, we can assist with Medicaid planning, which may cover the cost of your long-term health care.

Probate administration is the process where the court oversees the administration of a decedent’s estate, ensuring that taxes and other debts and expenses are paid, and that the remaining estate is distributed in accordance with the terms of the decedent’s will and any testamentary trusts, or by Indiana’s law of intestate succession if there is no will. Our firm assists clients with probating wills and in the administration of estates where the decedent died without a will (“intestate”). We can assist clients with the probate process even if the will at issue was drafted by another law firm or by the decedent himself.

Guardianships are court-supervised proceedings that name a person or persons to serve as guardian over a minor or an incapacitated person and manage that person’s affairs. A court-appointed “guardian of the estate” manages the incapacitated person’s income and assets, whereas a “guardian of the person” provides for the health, safety, and personal needs of the incapacitated individual. One person may serve as both the guardian of the estate and of the person. 

Our firm can help you plan your estate by considering the potential consequences of both federal estate taxes and Indiana inheritance taxes on your estate, including the potential application of gift tax and generation-skipping transfer tax laws. We approach these issues by sitting down with you and your family to discuss what we refer to as your “family issues” and “asset issues.” When discussing the family issues, we evaluate how to transfer your property to your family members at the time and in the manner that best meets your needs and goals. Then we discuss asset issues, or how to meet these goals while minimizing your tax exposure.