Articles

Written by: Marcus Tecarro At Polaris, we build a will as one part of a complete estate plan, not as a single document to check off a list. Missouri law sets specific requirements for what a will has to include…

Written by: Attorney Scott Stork TL;DR Signing a document called a will doesn’t guarantee that a will is valid or that it will work as you intend.. In Missouri, a will has to meet specific requirements, and six common mistakes…

Written by: Anne Harris TL;DR Missouri probate law offers two paths: independent administration, which runs with light court oversight and is faster and cheaper, and supervised administration, where the court signs off on major steps throughout, making it slower, costlier,…

Written by: Marcus Tecarro TL;DR Missouri probate usually takes six months to a year, and a big part of that is simply built into the law: creditors get a set window to come forward before an estate can close. What…

Written by: Attorney Scott Stork TL;DR A living trust and a will each play an important role in estate planning, but they serve different purposes. A living trust can help properly funded assets avoid probate, provide continuity if you become…

Written by: Attorney Scott Stork You are good at this. You built a career that most people would envy. You manage complexity at work every single day. You make hard decisions, meet deadlines, and provide for your family in ways…

Written by: Attorney Marcus Tecarro You spent decades building something worth protecting. The retirement accounts, the house, the investments — you did the work, made the sacrifices, and got the plan in place. But here’s a question most people never…

Written by: Attorney Scott Stork You did the right thing. At some point, you sat down with an attorney, worked through the hard questions, and put a plan in place. You have a will, maybe a trust, probably some beneficiary…

Written by: Attorney Scott Stork You’re already managing more than most people realize. Doctor’s appointments, prescription pickups, insurance calls, your own household, your own kids, and somewhere in the middle of all of it, a quiet fear has started to…

Written by: Attorney Marcus Tecarro Updating your will and beneficiaries after divorce is critical because your divorce decree does not do it for you. In Missouri, finalizing a divorce automatically revokes will provisions that benefit a former spouse, but it…