Asked and answered.

It depends on what you own and what you want to avoid. A will alone does not avoid probate in Wisconsin; a properly funded living trust usually does. For some married couples, a Wisconsin marital property agreement is a simpler third option. In your first meeting we’ll tell you plainly which fits and why.

State law decides who inherits. If all of your children are also your surviving spouse’s children, your spouse generally inherits everything. But in blended families the results surprise people: your spouse may receive none of your half of the marital property, which can leave a spouse and stepchildren co-owning a home. A will keeps that decision yours.

Every engagement is a flat fee quoted in your first meeting, before you commit to anything, based on the documents your situation actually needs. You will never receive an hourly bill from us.

Most families finish in a few weeks: a free consultation, a design meeting, and a signing meeting. If you need it faster, say so and we’ll work with your timeline.

Generally, when someone dies owning more than $50,000 in their name alone, or solely owned Wisconsin real estate. Smaller estates can often skip court using Wisconsin’s transfer by affidavit procedure. Assets with beneficiary designations, jointly owned property, and trust assets pass outside probate.

You can, but Wisconsin is where generic forms fail. Wisconsin is a marital property state, one of only nine, and templates written for the rest of the country routinely give away property the signer doesn’t fully own. Handwritten and improperly witnessed wills are not valid here, and DIY trusts are usually never funded. The documents are only cheap if they work.

A health care power of attorney names a person to make medical decisions for you if you can’t. A living will (Wisconsin’s Declaration to Physicians) states your own end-of-life wishes directly. They work together, and most complete plans include both.

Not in Wisconsin. Your spouse has no automatic legal authority to make your medical decisions, because Wisconsin has no family-consent law. And at death, your spouse only automatically keeps their own half of the marital property. The documents exist to close exactly these gaps.

It needs a review. Wisconsin’s marital property rules can reclassify how your assets are owned once you become residents, which changes what your existing documents actually control. The review is quick, and often the fixes are simple.

Often yes, with planning. Wisconsin’s Medicaid rules look back five years at gifts and transfers, so the earlier you plan, the more you can protect. Married couples also have significant spousal protections. Don’t start gifting or spending down before getting advice; the order of operations matters enormously.

No. Consultations and design meetings happen by video with families across Wisconsin. We coordinate signings so your documents are properly witnessed wherever you are.

After marriage, divorce, a birth, a death, a move to or from Wisconsin, buying a home or business, or roughly every three to five years. If you’re not sure whether a change matters, a quick call answers it.