Protect Your Family. Secure Your Legacy.

Yes. Even with a comprehensive revocable living trust, Georgia estate planning attorneys recommend a "pour-over will" that captures any assets not transferred into the trust during your lifetime. Without it, assets outside the trust must go through probate, which defeats part of the purpose of creating the trust. The pour-over will acts as a safety net, directing those assets into the trust and distributing them according to your wishes.

Georgia attorneys generally recommend reviewing your estate plan every three to five years, or whenever a major life event occurs. Key triggers include marriage, divorce, the birth of a child or grandchild, a significant change in assets, the death of a named beneficiary or executor, and changes to Georgia inheritance law. Estate plans drafted 10 or more years ago may reference outdated legal standards or people who are no longer part of your life.

If you die intestate (without a valid will) in Georgia, your assets are distributed according to the Georgia intestate succession statutes under O.C.G.A. § 53-2-1. Married individuals with children divide assets between the spouse and children. Unmarried individuals without children pass assets to parents, then siblings, then extended family in a specific order set by Georgia law. The state does not automatically receive your estate, but the distribution may differ significantly from what you would have chosen.

Georgia law does allow holographic (handwritten) wills and typed wills signed before two witnesses, but online templates carry serious risks. Templates often fail to account for Georgia-specific execution requirements, blended family dynamics, business ownership, or property held in multiple states. An improperly executed will can be invalidated entirely by Georgia courts, leaving your estate to be distributed under intestacy rules. The cost of a professionally drafted will is a small fraction of the legal expenses a defective will can cause your family.

A Georgia durable power of attorney (under O.C.G.A. § 10-6B) authorizes a person you designate — your "agent" — to manage your financial affairs, including banking, real estate, and business decisions, if you become incapacitated. A Georgia healthcare directive (advance directive for healthcare) designates a healthcare agent to make medical decisions and documents your treatment preferences if you cannot communicate. Both documents are critical complements to a will or trust and should be drafted by an attorney familiar with Georgia's specific execution and witness requirements.