Services – Tonya L Knauth, Attorney, PLLC

Estate Planning

Estate planning helps families eliminate uncertainty around the incapacity or death of a spouse, parent, or guardian. Documents Tonya may recommend include wills, trusts, and/or financial and medical powers of attorney.

A will provides reassurance by making a specific plan for property distribution after death, creating guardianship and trusts for minor children, and naming an executor to manage the estate. With professional help, drafting a will is a fairly straightforward process that simplifies the legal process for a grieving family after a death. Wills are state-law-specific documents that should be drafted by an attorney in conjunction with a complete estate plan; do-it-yourself wills can result in costly irreversible errors.

Probate

Probate is simply the legal process of following the instructions in a will and wrapping up one’s affairs after death. Our services offer comfort in the knowledge that after a death, the estate will be administered properly. Services may include representation of the executor, notification of creditors and negotiation of claims, family settlement agreements and distribution of assets.

If someone dies without a will, Tonya can provide guidance and services including affidavits of heirship, judicial declaration of heirships, the judicial appointment of an administrator and administration of the estate.

Guardianship

If a loved one is legally incapacitated and cannot care for themselves, a guardianship may be the best course of action to provide for them. Guardianship restricts a person’s legal rights and grants those rights to a guardian, who is then obligated to care for them (under the supervision of the Court). Services may include consultation for less restrictive alternatives to guardianship, if appropriate, or representation of a family member who wishes to become a guardian.

Tonya offers a personal consultation that can help clarify your options. Should you and Tonya agree to move forward after the consultation, she will offer up-front and complete details about her fees, the scope of the work, and the time it will take to complete the process.