Shannon Pawley, The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm Owner, addresses how blended families are becoming the norm and the resulting challenges in creating estate plans to provide for the needs of all family members.

DECATUR, GA, January ••, 2024: Shannon Pawley, Owner of The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm, has posted a new article on the law firm’s website entitled “Estate Planning for Blended Families: Navigating Complexities,” Ms. Pawley reviews common challenges and solutions.

As Pawley notes, “Blended families have been around for as long as there have been families. In previous decades, when people typically didn’t live to a ripe old age the way we now do, it was more common for children to lose a parent or both parents to accidents and or illness.” She continues, “While divorce was less common in those previous times, the remaining spouse would often remarry, and the child or children would be absorbed into the new family. In many cases if there were no subsequent marriage in the offing, other family members such as grandparents, an aunt, or other relative might raise the children.  Today,” Pawley writes, “divorce, not death, is among the most common cause for the increase in blended families. Death is still a factor too, but not quite as common as divorce.”

Pawley states, “It is estimated that today more than half of all Americans have either been or will be included in a blended family during their lifetime.” She acknowledges, “It can be hard to navigate the complexities of these different relationships and the death of a spouse can create even more complicated financial and emotional issues.”

According to Pawley, “Creating an Estate Plan is an important key in minimizing stress in a nuclear family, and even more integral when you have blended families. In blended families, disinheritance of children is a typical issue that comes up after one spouse dies.” Pawley emphasizes, “With a well thought out, comprehensive estate plan, you can honor your surviving spouses, while also providing for all children, and other dependents.”

“A comprehensive estate plan for a blended family,” explains Pawley, “will typically include setting up a trust.” She adds, “One type of trust frequently used in estate planning for blended families is a Qualified Terminable Interest Trust (QTIP). QTIP trusts enable the grantor to look after their spouse and ensure that the assets from the trust are passed on after that spouse dies to beneficiaries of their choice. This could be children from the grantor’s first marriage, other family members, or friends.”

The entire article can be read by CLICKING HERE

About The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm

The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm was established to serve the legal needs of retiring citizens. The Firm focuses its entire practice on providing strategies to protect independence, privacy, assets and taxes from the government. Shannon Pawley has grown her law practice by providing excellent customer satisfaction with personalized wealth protection plans.

About Shannon M. Pawley, J.D., LL.M

As the owner of The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm, Shannon M. Pawley and her entire team share a passion which focuses on being able to serve the legal needs of retiring individuals. In our firm, WE BELIEVE that people should not have to lose everything they’ve worked a lifetime to earn and that every person is an individual who deserves respect and the highest quality of life possible, regardless of age or ability.  We also believe that privacy and protection are the keys to personal peace. Born and raised in the Tidewater area of Virginia to a tightknit family with strong military service roots, Shannon learned from an early age the value of hard work and the importance of social awareness to ensure you always leave a situation in a better place than how you entered it.  In her junior year of high school, Shannon served as U.S. House of Representatives Page during the 101^st United States Congressional Session in Washington, D.C.  This experience exposed her to numerous new cultures and worldly issues.  Walking away from her experience as a U.S. House of Representative Page, Shannon knew that she wanted to pursue legal studies and be able to assist others in obtaining the best results available in difficult situations.

Shannon earned her undergraduate degree at North Carolina Wesleyan College and pursued a law degree from Michigan State University College of Law.  After obtaining her law degree and becoming a licensed attorney in Michigan, she continued her educational pursuit by acquiring a LL.M. (Master of Law) in Taxation from Wayne State University. After moving to Georgia in 2018, Shannon obtained her Georgia law license and has enjoyed being able to pursue her desire of ensuring persons are able to age with dignity, grace and independence.