While you're living and healthy, you value being able to make your own decisions about your finances, property, health care, and raising your children. However, should you die or become incapacitated, will others handle these matters for you according to your wishes? The only way to assure that will happen is through estate planning. This process involves weighing various personal and financial decisions and creating legal arrangements to carry out those decisions. This pamphlet looks at key estate-planning tools: wills, living trusts, powers of attorney, and living wills.

The information covered:

• What is a will?
• When should I write a will?
• What if I die without a will?
• What types of property pass to your beneficiaries outside of a will?
• What makes a will legal?
• Can I write my own will?
• How does someone challenge my will?
• How can I change my will?
• Where should I keep my will?
• Is a will written in another state legal in Wisconsin?
• What is a trust created by a will?
• What is a living trust?
• If I have a living trust, do I still need a will?
• What is a durable power of attorney?
• What is a durable power of attorney for health care?
• Can I have the same agent for both finances and health care?
• What is a living will?

Last updated: 9/2012