You walk into the Streeter Law Group office. You meet attorney Debbie Streeter. She answers your questions and informs you of current estate planning laws, speaking with you (not at you), in a language you understand. You feel great about the process, the attorney, the staff, and the experience as a whole. You decide to work with her (us), and we draft a plan that fits your individual needs.
Fast forward a couple of weeks. You are sitting again in our office. We present you with a nice stylized binder. Your estate plan is inside. A proverbial weight has been lifted.
You stand to leave. You pick up the binder. Now a new question crosses your mind … where do I put this thing?
The question of storage is one frequently asked. So, what do you do with those original signed documents anyway?
The simple answer is to put them someplace safe and accessible, with key emphasis on the word accessible.
Some clients choose to store their plans in safe deposit boxes or home safes. Both are smart choices. However, whatever you choose, make certain you aren’t the sole person granted access to open the box, knowing where the key is, or having the combination. Otherwise, your plan might get lost, and if no one can retrieve your plan, it is as good as useless.
Many clients prefer copying their plans, as to provide copies to those who will benefit most or be in the greatest need of a copy later. Tech savvy clients have been known to scan the information and store it on a flash drive. In either case, the challenge is if you make changes to your plan down the road, you must make certain those previous copies are destroyed.
However, if you as a client do misplace or lose your plan, you should contact your estate planning attorney immediately. In most cases (if the attorney or firm is still in practice), they might have a copy. At the same time, they might not, so one shouldn’t rely on this method solely as substitute to safeguarding your estate plan.
The lesson here is simple. Keep your plan accessible. Make certain those you love (at least those you’ve chosen as successor trustee), can get a hold of your plan should they need it. If all else fails, have someone contact your attorney’s office.
