• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Parman & Easterday

Oklahoma Estate Planning Attorneys

Call Now: (405) 843-6100 |
(918) 615-2700

Attend an Education Program-Oklahoma City Area Attend An Education Program in the Tulsa Area
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • What Our Clients Say
  • Estate Planning
    • Asset Protection
    • Business Succession Planning
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • IRA and Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • Powers of Attorney
    • Probate
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration and Probate
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Elder Law
    • Emergency Medicaid
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • Asset Protection Worksheet
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Edmond Elder Law
        • Oklahoma City Elder Law
        • Overland Park Elder Law
        • Yukon Elder Law
      • Medicaid
      • Nursing Home Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • An Overview of Estate and Gift Taxes
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Alzheimer’s FAQs
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Inheritance Planning for Minors
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Asset Protection
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Newsletters
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • Probate Checklist
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Probate Resources
      • Midwest City Probate
      • Moore Probate
      • Oklahoma City Probate
      • Overland Park Probate
    • Published Books
    • Pre Consultation Form
  • Communities We Serve
    • Edmond
    • Midwest City
    • Moore
    • Norman
    • Oklahoma City
    • Yukon
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • BLOG
  • Contact Us
Home » Estate Planning » Planning to Enjoy Thanksgiving

Planning to Enjoy Thanksgiving

November 28, 2019 by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law

Planning ahead is the loving thing to do. Whether it is for a Thanksgiving meal or for your estate plan, planning is imperative. This article points out the various consequences of your failure to plan, including the increased likelihood for family discord. Read on to learn how planning ahead can help achieve the desired results.

Planning to Enjoy Thanksgiving

by Steve Hartnett 0 Comments

As friends and family gather around the Thanksgiving table, we recognize how truly grateful we are. We are grateful we have such wonderful friends and family and that they could be with us to celebrate. We are grateful that our health is better than it could be. While we miss friends and family who could not be with us, we raise a glass in their honor and cherish the memories we are creating with those joining us.

One of the reasons we can enjoy our time together is that we’ve prepared. The Thanksgiving gathering did not come together on its own. We have arranged time away from work or school. We may have travelled long distances to be together. We’ve prepared the main course, typically a turkey. Maybe we had to arise before daylight to start cooking. We’ve prepared our sides, such as sweet potatoes, and our desserts, such as pumpkin and pecan pies. We’ve thought of everything, right down to the real whipped cream for the pies.

Sometimes it takes a little planning to make things go smoothly so you can enjoy the most important moments in life. Estate Planning really is no different. It’s important to do your planning so that things go smoothly when you need them. It’s important to plan so that when the time comes, your affairs are handled the way that you want them to be handled. When you’ve planned, you can focus on the moments in life meant to be cherished, the raucous Thanksgiving meal or the soft conversation by the convalescent bed. Those moments could be lost if the planning is not done ahead of time.

As Alan Lakein famously said, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” There are countless issues that could arise without proper estate planning:

  1. Your assets would go via intestacy, a one-size-fits-all plan devised by your state legislature. So, your assets probably would not end up going to the people you want in the shares you want.
  2. Your “plan” would not consider the tax, creditor, divorce protection, or maturity issues your beneficiaries might have. In other words, even if your assets were going to whom you wanted, it is not likely they would be going the way you wanted. Your failure to plan could mean your assets would go unnecessarily to the beneficiaries’ creditors, divorcing spouses, or the government.
  3. Your plan would not appoint the decision-makers you would want to handle your estate. The relative you didn’t even invite to Thanksgiving might end up in control of your assets.
  4. You would have no say regarding who would care for your minor children after your death.
  5. If you were to become incapacitated during life, you would need to go through a public proceeding to declare you incapacitated and then a judge you didn’t know would appoint someone you may not like and whom you did not select to make decisions for you.

Finally, it would be much more likely that in the future the relative calm around the Thanksgiving table would be disrupted by discord caused by your failure to plan.

Planning ahead is not easy, but it is the loving thing to do. And, won’t you feel better knowing that things are taken care of, so you can relax and enjoy life’s special moments.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M.
Director of Education
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (858) 453-2128
www.aaepa.com

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Founder and Owner at Parman & Easterday
After helping his own family deal with a lengthy probate and the IRS following his father’s untimely death in a farm accident, Larry Parman made a decision to help families create effective estate plans designed to reduce taxes, minimize legal interference with the transfer of assets to one’s heirs, and protect his clients’ assets from predators and creditors.
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Latest posts by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law (see all)
  • Estate Administration 101 - February 2, 2023
  • Why Do You Need an Elder Law Attorney? - January 31, 2023
  • Inheritance Planning for Blended Families - January 26, 2023

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Legal Education Tagged With: Estate Planning, planning, Thanksgiving, trusts, vacation

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Estate Administration 101
wills and trusts
4 Things Trusts Do That Wills Can’t Do
advance estate planning property liquidation
Downsizing Can Be Part of Your Estate Plan
Now That Mid-Terms Are Over, Let’s Talk Taxes
ancillary probate
Prevent the Nightmare of Ancillary Probate
Common Mistakes in Estate Planning – Part V

Primary Sidebar

Parman & Easterday, LLP

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING CHECKLIST

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Where We Are

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
13913 Quail Pointe Drive, Suite B
Oklahoma City, OK 73134
Phone: (405) 843-6100
Fax: (405) 917-7018

MAP

parman_sidbr_map

Where We Are

TULSA, OK
Memorial Place 7633 E. 63rd Place
Tulsa, OK 74133
Phone: (918) 615-2700

MAP

parman_sidbr_map

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo

The information on this Oklahoma Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

Oklahoma City Estate Planning Attorneys at Parman & Easterday offer estate planning services in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and surrounding areas. Contact us for help today.

Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys


© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube