Practice Areas

Oklahoma Estate Planning Attorney

Our lawyers provide a broad range of legal services to individuals in the areas of estate planning, probate, asset protection, real estate, adoption and guardianship.

Last Will and Testament

While you may have told your family how you want your estate distributed upon your death, it won't be legally enforceable unless your wishes are put in a document. That document could be a last will and testament or a living trust. More about Last Will and Testaments.

Living Trust

A living trust (also sometimes called an inter vivos trust, a revocable trust, or a Loving trust©) is a powerful estate-planning document. It allows you to fully control your assets during your lifetime and fully provide for how you want those assets to be distributed after your death. More about Living Trusts.

Power of Attorney

At Postic & Bates, our estate planning lawyers create durable powers of attorney for both health care and financial decisions. The person named in a power of attorney document is typically called an agent or an attorney in fact. To be an attorney at law requires a law license, but anyone can be an attorney in fact. More about Power of Attorneys.

Living Will

Families often discuss end-of-life issues such as whether they would want to have artificial life support if they were in a coma with no hope of recovery. The document where you can make your wishes legally enforceable is called a living will. More about Living Wills.

Special Needs Trusts

Many parents with disabled children want to leave assets to their child in their wills. Unfortunately, a gift to a disabled child usually ends up being a gift to the government instead. As a result of the gift, the child typically will lose eligibility for government benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security Disability Income (SSDI), and Medicaid, until they have spent all of the money mom or dad gave him or her. A special needs trust allows parents to provide supplemental income for a handicapped child without endangering government benefits.

A special needs trust can also be used to protect assets and provide supplemental income for someone entering a nursing home. More about Special Needs Trusts.

Elder Law

Estate planning is important at all stages of life. However, as you get older you might need someone to help you with decision-making, so documents such as a durable power of attorney for health care and financial decisions become more important. Elder law is simply estate planning for the elderly. More about Elder Law.

Probate

Probate is the court proceeding through which a will is proved to be valid and the estate of a decedent is administered. The process generally includes collecting a decedent's assets, liquidating liabilities, paying necessary taxes and distributing property to heirs. More about Probate.

Adoption

Our firm assists birth mothers and adoptive parents, grandparents and step-parents with domestic and international adoptions. We work with adoption agencies, social workers, home study representatives, physicians, hospital personnel and others to achieve open or closed adoptions. Upon court approval, medical costs and living expenses can be made available to birth mothers. More about Adoption.

Guardianship

When a family member can no longer manage his or her assets or personal needs, a guardianship may be necessary. A guardianship is a proceeding in which the court appoints someone to take care of the person or property of one who is incapacitated by age, illness, or disability. A guardianship allows for the overseeing of the care of a person to ensure that his or her resources are properly managed. Careful estate planning can avoid the need for a guardianship. However, when a guardianship is necessary, we assist clients in the starting and administration of guardianships in the District Courts of Oklahoma.

Asset Protection

We represent clients in protecting their assets from catastrophic loss due to litigation or other encumbrances by creating entities that legally limit creditors' rights. These same entities also can be used to reduce estate taxes and spread income tax liability among family members or other beneficiaries who might be in lower income tax brackets. The goal of asset protection is to allow the client to maintain control over his or her assets, while avoiding the liabilities that ownership of such assets brings. More about Asset Protection.

Real Estate

We represent both commercial clients and individuals in all proceedings and transactions that deal with real property and the structures attached to it -- including purchase and sale, construction, mortgages and foreclosures, leases, zoning, title examinations, quiet title actions, closings, and management.

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Free Consultation: Contact Oklahoma estate planning, adoption, or real estate attorney at Postic & Bates to arrange a free consultation.