Our Practice Areas

Want a will or trust drafted?
Need authority to help an incapacitated person?
Lost a loved one and don't know what to do next?
We can help!

Our Practice Areas

Estate Planning is our Passion

Our focus and passion at Hardacre Law is estate planning.
While we practice in other areas of law, those other areas go hand in hand with estate planning concepts.
By concentrating in one primary practice area, we are able to provide higher quality and more knowledgeable and insightful legal advice.

Estate Planning

WHAT IT IS

Estate planning is the process of deciding what your objectives/intentions are in the event of your incapacity or death, developing a plan to accomplish those objectives in light of your specific situation, and giving legal effect to that plan through the preparation of estate planning documents or other methods.

ESTATE PLANNING DOCUMENTS

The collection of legal documents that often make up an estate plan, include the following: a last will and testament, (possibly) a trust and related trust documents, a personal property memorandum, a financial power of attorney, a medical power of attorney, an advance healthcare directive (aka ‘living will’), and an instruction for last remains.

WHAT WE DO

At Hardacre Law, LLC, we do more than draft key estate planning documents for you… We educate you on estate planning concepts and documents, as your estate plan is only as useful as your understanding of it. We make recommendations and counsel you through your decisions for your estate plan, since the decision is ultimately yours and it should be your estate plan. We instruct you on how to implement your estate plan, as the work is not over just because your will, trust, or other document has been signed. And we are a continuous resource for you as you go through life events.

Estate Administration

WHAT IT IS

While estate planning is the process that occurs while one is alive, estate administration is the process that occurs after one’s death. Generally, it involves: (1) identifying and collecting the deceased’s assets, (2) paying any debts and/or any taxes owed, and (3) distributing the remaining assets to beneficiaries/heirs according to the provisions in a will, trust, or the state’s ‘default distribution laws’ (aka intestacy laws.)

WHAT WE DO

We help you sort through and finalize the affairs of a loved one who has passed so that it is done correctly and as painlessly as possible. Specifically, our estate administration practice includes representing personal representatives (aka executors) through the probate process, as well as helping trustees understand and fulfill their duties and responsibilities set forth under a trust.

THE PROBATE PROCESS

Historically, probate referred to the legal process of proving the validity of a will. Today, the term has been broadened to also include the legal process for individuals who died without a will. But for all purposes, probate is simply a court process—filing court documents, complying with statutory deadlines, and following the system created by state law to administer the probate estate. Determining whether probate is necessary is not as straightforward as many people think, and we recommend enlisting our services so we can help you make this determination, and, if probate is indeed necessary, we can help counsel you through the probate process.

Guardianships & Conservatorships

WHAT IT IS

A guardianship/conservatorship is a legal relationship created when the court gives a person the legal authority to make decisions for another, incapacitated, person. Incapacity may be due to age (a minor), disability, illness, or other reasons or conditions that affect the person’s ability to make decisions.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GUARDIANSHIP & CONSERVATORSHIP

A guardian makes decisions regarding a person’s day-to-day care, including living arrangements, medical treatment, etc. A conservator, on the other hand, makes decisions regarding a person’s property and finances.

WHAT WE DO

Seeking a guardianship and/or conservatorship for an adult is not a simple task. It requires the person seeking the guardianship and/or conservatorship to present evidence to a court showing a person’s incapacity and showing that the guardianship and/or conservatorship is the least restrictive means available. Don’t go through this process alone—let us help you pursue a guardianship and/or conservatorship for a loved one!

...And More!

business

Our business practice counsels small businesses on their everyday legal questions and issues. We also help business owners select and form their business entity, as well as help business owners comply with their ongoing reporting obligations relating to the entity type chosen. In addition to the above, we review and draft various contracts, including operating agreements, service contracts, and vendor agreements.

real estate

We assist buyers and sellers through the purchase and sale of residential real estate by reviewing and drafting buy/sell agreements (including for sale by owner transactions.) We also assist landlords with drafting and reviewing both residential and commercial lease agreements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some answers to the questions we receive the most about our services.
If we missed anything, please do not hesitate to contact us. We’ll be happy to help!

How much do you charge for an estate plan?

We customize the price we charge for an estate plan to reflect your needs. As such, there is no fixed fee schedule, and we are unable to provide quotes prior to the initial consultation.

We generally charge flat fees, rather than hourly fees, for estate plans.

Flat fees for estate plans, often range anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000, but can be more or less depending on a person’s estate planning needs.

How much do you charge for other legal services?

Just as we customize the fees we charge for estate plans, we also customize what we charge for other services.

Fees may be flat fees, hourly fees, a mix of flat and hourly, a percentage of the estate’s value, etc.

Quotes for fees are provided only after the initial consultation.

Hourly fees often range anywhere from $200/hr. to $300/hr., but can also be more or less than this stated range.

How do we get started?

To get started with us, please contact us by telephone at (720) 441-6714, by email at Contact@Hardacre-Law.com, or by filing out the contact form on our Contact Page.

If the legal service you request is something our firm could potentially help you with, we will schedule an appointment with you for a free initial consultation.

It’s likely that we will send you an intake worksheet that you should complete and return to us prior to your initial appointment.

At the initial appointment we will discuss your legal issue/the legal service you are requesting, and whether we will be entering into an attorney-client relationship. Quotes for fees will also be discussed at this time.

What should I bring with me to the appointment(s)?

We recommend bringing a copy of your completed intake worksheet with you to the appointment (see “How do we get started?” above for more information), any documents that we have specifically requested from you already, and the following, if applicable:

For Estate Planning: copies of any current estate planning documents (wills, trusts, power of attorneys, living wills, etc.), divorce agreements, separation agreements, pre- and post-marital agreements, business agreements (such as an operating agreement), and any other documents you feel may be relevant.

For Estate Administration: estate planning documents of the deceased, if any, (including the original last will and testament, trust, and any amendments or codicils), the death certificate, the deceased’s bank account statements and credit card statements for the last 6 months, life insurance policies, retirement account statements, tax returns from the last three years, and addresses of heirs/beneficiaries.

For Guardianship/Conservatorships: copies of any power of attorney documents (such as a medical power of attorney and/or a financial power of attorney), and a letter from a physician regarding the person’s disabilities or impairments.

Is it okay if my spouse does not attend the initial estate planning appointment?

If you and your spouse intend on doing an estate plan together, then your spouse should attend the meeting. We cannot assume that spouses agree on everything, and we need to be able to determine at the appointment if a conflict of interest may exist between spouses.

Additionally, we will discuss a lot at the initial appointment which will be impossible to relay to your spouse at a later time.

We understand that this causes an inconvenience for many individuals, but that is why we offer extended hours of operation and have the flexibility to conduct meetings by teleconference or videoconference. We are willing to work with you on meeting times so please reach out to us if this is a concern.

Our Practice Areas

Want a will or trust drafted?Need authority to help an incapacitated person?Lost a loved one and don't know what to do next? We can help!