Avoiding Family Conflict

I am familiar with family conflict when an important family member becomes disabled or passes on. I have seen it in my own family and it is not pretty.

I often think there is a “play” that comes out when a family leader becomes mentally disabled or passes on, whether it be the father, mother, grandmother or grandfather: One of the adult children will play the role of “Switzerland”. They want to stand on the sidelines and wait until everything is over and say, “Mail me a check when it’s all done.” They do not want to get involved.

Another character plays the role of “Dutiful Child.” This adult child steps up to “Do the right thing.” They try to carry out the wishes of the mentally disabled or deceased parent and try to follow those instructions to the best of their abilities, as required by the law and as requested by the mentally disabled or deceased parent.

There is another adult child who will think, “How can I take advantage of this situation?” No longer restrained by their fear or respect of the disabled or deceased parent or grandparent, this child will try to take advantage of the situation and not follow the instructions or wishes and will try to advance their own cause, financially or otherwise, to the harm of the Estate Plan and the other family members.

As part of our Unique Process, The Customized Protective Estate Planning Solution™, we spend time trying to get to know and understand your family dynamics and plan for those. Even with the best processing up front, sometimes a conflict will arise after the disability or death that no one could foresee.

We also build into your Customized Protective Estate Plan™ provisions to limit the ability of any family member to take advantage of other loved ones when you are mentally disabled or after you pass on.

It is often hard enough to keep family together – don’t create certain conflict between your loved ones after you are gone by poor Estate Planning.

Let us help you avoid that. Call today for a confidential appointment.