We believe estate plans should be as simple and straightforward as they can be.

That doesn’t mean there’s never a place for complexity. Sometimes there absolutely is. But every additional trust, restriction, or strategy should have a clear purpose. Families change. Assets change. Laws change. Priorities change. A good estate plan needs enough flexibility to change with them.

When we talk with clients about their estate plans, one of the first things we look at is the attorney drafting the plan.

Do they specialize in estate planning in your state? Do they serve other clients like you? Are they responsive? Do you trust them? Are their fees reasonable for the work they’re doing? And maybe most importantly: Is this someone you’d feel comfortable having your children work with someday?

We’ve intentionally chosen not to have an estate attorney on staff at Hill. Estate planning attorneys have different specialties and strengths, and the more complex a client’s situation becomes, the more important it is to have the right attorney for that particular work. We’d rather help our clients find the right fit and then work closely with that person.

As for the estate plan itself, reviewing your plan every five years is a good rhythm. Of course, life and tax laws don’t always follow a five-year schedule. A marriage, divorce, death in the family, move to another state, business transaction, or significant change in wealth could all be reasons to revisit things sooner.

Part of our job is helping clients recognize when it’s time to take another look. And if we haven’t reviewed your estate plan recently, that doesn’t necessarily mean something is wrong or has been overlooked. You may just not have hit one of those checkpoints yet.

We also want to make sure your estate plan and investment plan are actually working together. That means checking things like beneficiary designations and account titling, thinking through where cash will come from for taxes or family needs, and making sure any charitable giving is structured in a way that gives your family the flexibility you intended.

None of these topics is particularly flashy, but they’re often the details that determine whether an estate plan works the way you hope it should.

Our role isn’t to design the most sophisticated estate plan possible. It’s to ask excellent questions, identify things that may not line up, and work alongside your attorney to get them resolved.

At the end of the day, the goal is pretty simple: a plan that reflects what you want, can adapt as life changes, and isn’t unnecessarily complex for the people you’re ultimately creating it for.

Have a question about your own estate plan? Click here to schedule time to talk with us.

Our clients know we support them and their families in meaningful ways. This includes articulating long-term investment plans, helping refine estate strategies, and thinking creatively about charitable giving.

While mission statements are common in businesses and nonprofits, they’re far less common in family life. Yet as families become more complex, people live longer, and communication becomes more open, many are taking the long view and creating multi-generational plans that reflect not just what they want to happen with their wealth, but why. A family mission statement can bring clarity, connection, and shared purpose, often helping to avoid conflict now and in the future.

A recent Wall Street Journal article shares examples and great stories about how a family mission statement may make sense for your family. In the words of James Harold Webb, a serial entrepreneur quoted in the article and the patriarch of a 16-person blended family,

“Life is a gift that cannot be wasted. Family is the essence of that life and, as a family, we will work hard. We will play hard. We will live in the pursuit of knowledge. We will love our family unconditionally. We will give more than we take to ensure a better world.”

With the holidays approaching and families gathering, it’s a natural time to raise the topic. If this sounds appealing to you, and you’d like our help in preparing for that discussion or have us involved with future discussions, we’d love to help. Please reach out to me at buddy@hillinvestmentgroup.com or directly to your advisor.

Celebrate and make the most of this time together!

A legend has passed: Cambridge-educated Jonathan Clements was The Wall Street Journal’s personal-finance columnist for 20 years before founding his own website, HumbleDollar.com.

Clements was one of the first financial journalists to champion index funds and was an early voice in describing the way we invest. He was a thoughtful rebel and a gifted communicator, with more than 1,000 published articles. Rick and Matt would often ask, “Have you read JC’s column on…?” His articles were always insightful and original with an eye turned toward what is best for the client–not for Wall Street.

Sadly, he passed recently after a long and public (his choice) battle with lung cancer. Jonathan wanted people to maximize their time while alive.

With that in mind, here are three reflections worth reading:

• His own story: “Some Final Personal-Finance Advice,” The Wall Street Journal, 2024.
  
• Ron Lieber’s tribute: “Five Pearls of Wisdom From a Legend of Financial Writing,” The New York Times.
  
• Jason Zweig’s essay: The Wall Street Journal’s touching ode to Jonathan.

If Jonathan’s reflections inspire you to have deeper conversations about your family’s financial life, we invite you to explore the educational resources available on our website.