About this practice area
For most Connecticut families, a basic estate plan comes down to three documents: a will, a durable power of attorney, and a health care document that names your representative. The will says who receives your estate after you die. The other two name the people who can act for you during your life, one for money and property and one for medical decisions when you cannot make them yourself.
We have practiced in New Haven since 1956, and our office is on Crown Street. Our experienced attorneys prepare wills, powers of attorney, living wills and the other documents your plan may need, and we also represent executors and administrators when an estate goes through probate.
A will decides who receives what you own
A will names the people who receive your property and the executor who settles your estate. If you have minor children, it can also name a guardian for them if neither parent is living. The guardian takes office by filing a written acceptance with the probate court, which then oversees the guardianship.
Connecticut requires a will to be in writing, signed by you, and signed by two witnesses in your presence. You must be at least 18 and of sound mind. The witnesses can also sign a sworn statement on the will, which lets the probate court accept it later, usually without calling them to testify.
A will controls the property that goes through your estate: mainly what you own in your own name, including a share you own with someone else without a right of survivorship. Several common assets pass outside it: a house or bank account owned jointly with a right of survivorship, life insurance and retirement accounts with a named beneficiary, payable-on-death accounts, and property held in a trust. Part of planning is checking how each one is titled, so the will and the beneficiary forms point the same way.
If you die without a will, Connecticut's intestacy statutes decide who inherits, and the result can surprise families. Our article on dying without a will in Connecticut explains who receives what.
A power of attorney covers money and property
If you are in the hospital for a month, someone still has to pay the mortgage and deal with the bank. A power of attorney names an agent who can handle your financial and property matters, such as paying bills, managing bank accounts and dealing with real estate. Under Connecticut's Uniform Power of Attorney Act, it is durable unless it says otherwise, which means it keeps working if you become incapacitated.
Connecticut requires a power of attorney to be dated, signed and witnessed by two people. Most people also sign it before a notary or another official who can take acknowledgments. That makes a bank or other institution more likely to accept it. A power of attorney used to sell or mortgage Connecticut real estate must be signed, witnessed and acknowledged.
Without one, your family may have to ask the probate court to appoint a conservator before anyone can manage your finances, which takes time and keeps the court involved.
The power of attorney ends when you die. After that, the estate is settled through the probate court, usually by an executor or administrator the court appoints.
Health care documents name who decides for you
Connecticut lets you put your health care wishes in writing ahead of time. A living will states your wishes about your care, including whether you want life support systems withheld or withdrawn. An appointment of a health care representative names the person who makes health care decisions for you if you become unable to make them yourself.
The state's form lets you sign both in one document, in front of two adult witnesses. The person you name as your representative cannot be one of them. Give copies to your doctor and to the person you named, so the document is easy to find when it is needed.
Family changes are the time to update your plan
Review your documents when your family changes. Marriage and divorce can each affect a will you already signed, and so can the birth or adoption of a child. A divorce, for example, revokes the parts of a Connecticut will that leave property to the former spouse or name them executor, unless the will says otherwise. It also cancels your former spouse's appointment as your health care representative, unless you said otherwise. And once a divorce is filed, your spouse's authority as your agent under a power of attorney ends, unless the document says otherwise. Beneficiary forms on life insurance and retirement accounts are separate, so check those too.
It is also worth a review if you moved to Connecticut with documents signed in another state, if an executor or agent you named can no longer serve, or if what you own has changed a lot.
What to bring to the first meeting
- The full names of the people you want in your plan, and how to reach them.
- A rough list of what you own and how each item is titled, with recent statements for retirement accounts and life insurance if you have them.
- Any will, power of attorney or health care document you signed before, including ones from another state.
What happens when you call
When you call, tell us what you want to put in place and a little about your family. If you are not sure yet what you need, say so, and we will go through it when you meet with one of our attorneys. If a family member has died and you need help with the estate, see our probate page.
Call us at 203-865-3123, or use our contact form.
