Attorney Robin Gorenberg

You can proactively prepare estate planning paperwork to give your relatives and yourself peace and security. These may include Wills and Financial and Health Care Powers of Attorney (for life decisions when you cannot), as well as Health Care Proxies. Develop a Revocable Trust to reach goals that may include avoiding probate (a one-year process) and/or reducing estate taxes. Formal probate is required no matter what a Will will says. It is a legal process to: 1) Present your will to the Probate Court; 2) Get the court's OK to transfer estate assets to the 'intent's beneficiaries'; and 3) Notify everyone and let them make claims, if any. Probate in MA takes at least a year. The Will only affects property in your name. Jointly owned property or that which names a beneficiary as a joint owner (like, life insurance and IRAs) are not passed through your will or probate. They go directly to joint owners or designated beneficiaries. Legal costs of Probate (legal fees, probate costs) and the time delay (at least a year, so assets are not passed to heirs' names) and lack of privacy (the process is public, so anyone may see the documents) make probate ill-advised. A Revocable Trust, also known as a 'Living Trust,' may be established and funded during your life (that is, your assets are retitled to the trust's name). You keep control, and all your assets remain under your SS#. Taxes will also stay the same while you are alive.

Robin Gorenberg, a reputable estate planner, receives favorable ratings from clients. She helped design estate plans while explaining complex legal issues in straightforward terms, creating and reviewing wills and drafting advance medical directives and powers of attorney. Clients mention her high ethical standards and concern, opening up a dialogue despite the occupation's hardship. They stated that she offers a clear legal separation while also helping them consider their assets. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she provided swift, competent services: clients stated that her pricing was fair given the attention and time she invested. Gorenberg also has an excellent knowledge of references and appears welcoming and "personable yet proficient," as clients observed. She made herself accessible, closely following up and following through. Her collaboration with other specialists gives clients a sense of belonging and a need to validate their legal future. She works with a local probate court and assists clients in navigating the legal system. A few clients commented that their generation is fortunate to have unrestricted access to estate planning, given the challenges of COVID-19 and the urgency of the need.