Monday, December 06, 2010 Ethical Wills
Why do we engage in estate planning? Most people would say their priorities in estate planning are protecting their assets and ensuring those assets get passed on properly.
However, we often miss the equally important goal of estate planning: passing on your values, hopes, fears, lessons learned, etc. to the next generation(s).
An ethical will is not a formal legal document, nor is there one right way to put an ethical will together. Your ethical will could be a single sheet of paper, or an hour-long video. It could be something you do once and tuck away, or it could be an ongoing process for you. There is no right or wrong way to go about writing or producing an ethical will.
The purpose of an ethical will is for you to pass on non-material, intangible things, ideas, wishes, etc. that are important to you. What were the lessons you learned in life that you want to pass onto the next generation? What would you want to tell your grandkids if you never knew them? These are just a couple of the countless reasons to write an ethical will.
For a great article on ethical wills, check out last week's Philadelphia Inquirer piece here.
If we can assist you with any questions regarding writing an ethical will, please call our office at (215) 706-0200. |