PERSONALIZED ESTATE PLANNING IN MARYLAND
Why Estate Planning Matters
Make Important Decisions for Yourself, Your Family and Your Future
Estate planning gives you the opportunity to decide what should happen if you cannot manage financial or healthcare decisions yourself, how you want your property handled, and who you want to protect and provide for.
A good estate plan is not about collecting legal documents. It is about making thoughtful decisions now so the people you trust have clear direction when they need it.
Attorney Dawn Trainor-Fogleman has practiced law for more than 30 years and concentrated on estate planning for more than 20 years. She helps clients understand their options in plain English and create plans based on their families, property, concerns and goals.
Dawn is a mobile estate planning attorney. She meets with clients in their homes throughout Maryland, with appointments also available in Washington, D.C. Instead of requiring you to come to a traditional law office, Dawn brings the estate planning process to you.
You do not need to know which estate planning documents you need before you call.
30+ Years Practicing Law
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20+ Years Focused on Estate Planning
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Mobile & In-Home Appointments
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30+ Years Practicing Law • 20+ Years Focused on Estate Planning • Mobile & In-Home Appointments •
MORE THAN PLANNING FOR WHAT HAPPENS AFTER DEATH
Many people first think about estate planning because they want a Will. But some of the most important questions an estate plan addresses can arise during your lifetime.
If you became unable to manage your affairs, who would you trust to handle financial matters for you? Who should be able to make healthcare decisions? Would that person know what you wanted?
Planning ahead allows you to make those choices for yourself.
An Estate Plan Can Protect Your Choices While You Are Living
Who can handle financial and legal matters if I cannot?
Who do I trust to make healthcare decisions for me?
How can I communicate my wishes concerning medical care?
Who should receive my property?
Who should be responsible for carrying out my wishes?
Who would I want to care for my minor children?
A Will, Trust, Durable Financial Power of Attorney and Advance Medical Directive serve different purposes. Which documents belong in your plan depends on the decisions you need to make.
WHEN LIFE CHANGES, YOUR PLAN MAY NEED TO CHANGE TOO
You do not have to wait until retirement or until you have accumulated significant wealth to think about estate planning.
Changes in your family, property, finances or responsibilities can make it especially important to create a plan or take another look at documents you already have.
Estate Planning Is Relevant at More Stages of Life Than You May Think
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Parents may need to decide who they would want to care for minor children and how property left for those children should be managed.
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Changes in property, accounts or other assets can affect how you want your estate handled and whether an older plan still reflects your circumstances.
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Changes in family relationships can affect beneficiaries, decision-makers and other choices made in an estate plan.
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This is often a time when families begin thinking not only about inheritance, but also about who could handle financial and healthcare decisions if help is needed in the future.
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A Will, Trust, Power of Attorney or Advance Medical Directive prepared years ago may no longer reflect the people you trust, the property you own or the decisions you would make today.
Estate planning does not have to begin with a crisis. Creating or reviewing your plan while you have time to consider your choices gives you an opportunity to decide what you want before those decisions become urgent.
DIFFERENT DOCUMENTS FOR DIFFERENT DECISIONS
A Will Is Important, But It May Not Be Your Entire Estate Plan
Each estate planning document has a different purpose. Understanding those differences makes it easier to see how the pieces of your plan fit together.
Wills
A Will can address how certain property should be handled after your death, who should administer your estate, and who you would want to care for minor children.
Trusts
A Trust can provide additional ways to hold, manage or distribute property. A Trust is not automatically right for every family, so the decision should begin with what you are trying to accomplish.
Durable Financial Powers of Attorney
A Durable Financial Power of Attorney allows you to choose someone to handle financial and legal matters on your behalf under the authority provided in the document.
Advance Medical Directives
An Advance Medical Directive addresses healthcare decision-making and can help communicate your wishes if you are unable to make or communicate medical decisions yourself.
Depending on your circumstances, your estate plan may include other documents as well, such as a Healthcare Power of Attorney, Living Will, HIPAA authorization or waiver, or nomination of a guardian for minor children.
ONE PLAN, DIFFERENT RESPONSIBILITIES
Do You Need a Will, a Trust or Both?
There is no one answer for every family.
Some people may be well served by a Will along with appropriate financial and healthcare planning documents. Others have circumstances that make a Trust worth considering. Dawn starts with your family, property, beneficiaries and goals, then explains the options so you can make an informed decision.
Estate planning becomes easier to understand when you stop thinking about document names for a moment and start with the decision you want to make.
Start With the Decision You Need to Make
A DIFFERENT WAY TO MEET WITH YOUR ATTORNEY
Dawn is a mobile estate planning attorney. Instead of requiring clients to come to a traditional law office, she brings the estate planning process to them.
Dawn meets with clients in their homes at mutually convenient times. She does not keep conventional business hours, which gives clients more flexibility to plan appointments around work, retirement and other responsibilities.
Meeting at home can also be practical during the estate planning process. Existing Wills, Trusts, deeds and other personal records may already be nearby if they become relevant to the conversation.
Dawn’s practice is based in Damascus, and she provides mobile estate planning services throughout Maryland and Northwest Washington, D.C., including Gaithersburg and surrounding communities.
Meet With Dawn in the Comfort of Your Own Home
PERSONALIZED, PLAIN-ENGLISH LEGAL GUIDANCE
Your Estate Plan Should Make Sense to You
Dawn has practiced law for more than 30 years and has concentrated on estate planning for more than 20 years.
A central part of her approach is making sure clients understand the documents they sign. Estate planning can involve unfamiliar legal terms and important decisions about family, property, finances and healthcare. Dawn explains those issues in plain English so clients can understand what their documents do and how the different parts of their estate plan work together.
Her focus on estate planning also has a personal foundation. After losing both of her parents within a relatively short period, Dawn gained a deeper practical understanding of estate planning from a family’s perspective. That experience contributed to her decision to concentrate her practice on helping families prepare.
Dawn also views estate planning as an ongoing relationship rather than a conversation that necessarily ends when documents are signed. She encourages clients to reach out when a significant life event occurs or when they have questions about whether an existing plan still reflects their circumstances.
START WITH YOUR QUESTIONS
Common Estate Planning Questions
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Estate planning involves more than the value of your property. It can also address who may handle financial matters for you, who can make healthcare decisions if you cannot, your medical wishes, guardianship decisions for minor children, and what should happen to the property you do own.
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That depends on your family, property, beneficiaries and goals. Some people may be well served by a Will along with appropriate financial and healthcare planning documents. Others may have circumstances that make a Trust useful.
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A Durable Financial Power of Attorney can give someone you choose authority to handle financial and legal matters on your behalf according to the terms of the document.
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An Advance Medical Directive can identify the person you want involved in healthcare decision-making and communicate your wishes concerning medical care.
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Consider reviewing your plan when there are meaningful changes involving your marriage, family, property, finances, health, beneficiaries, decision-makers or wishes. Older documents may also deserve another look if you are no longer sure they reflect your current circumstances.
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If you already have Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney or Advance Medical Directives, it can be helpful to have those available. Information about your property, financial accounts, insurance, retirement accounts and the people you may want to name as decision-makers can also help.
You do not need to have everything organized before getting started.
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No. Dawn is a mobile estate planning attorney. She provides mobile and in-home estate planning appointments throughout her Maryland service area, with appointments also available in Washington, D.C.
START WITH A CONVERSATION
You Do Not Need to Know What Documents You Need Before You Call
If you know it is time to create or update an estate plan but are unsure where to begin, start with a conversation.
Dawn can learn about your family, concerns and goals, explain the available options in plain English, and help you understand the next steps.
And because Dawn is a mobile attorney, the conversation can take place in the comfort of your own home.