AL Specific

Trusts, Estates & Probate

Step-by-Step Guide to Drafting Wills and Trusts in Alabama

Credits Available
Credit Status Total
Alabama CLE Approved 6 Total
Mississippi CLE Approved 6 Total
OnDemand
5 hours 53 minutes
Jennifer McInerney
Page Ellis
Kyle Massengale
C. Blake West
M. Hampton Baxley
With Jennifer M. McInerney from McInerney Law + 4 others
Recorded October 01, 2025.
Product ID 100829

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Overview

Complete With Essential Sample Forms, Tax Tactics, and Troubleshooting Solutions

Do you have all the information you need to draft customized testamentary documents for each of your clients? Don't spend years gathering precious bits of legal practice wisdom - our experienced attorney faculty are here to share their time-tested methods of identifying clients' needs and creating custom-tailored wills and trusts to fit each specific situation. This legal primer offers all the tools and sample forms to get you started. Get the fundamental skills you need to build your estate planning practice - register today!

  • Get practical will and trust drafting skills to speed up the process and give the testator's last wishes power.
  • Stave off conflicts of interest with a clear determination of who your client is from the start.
  • Learn how to deal with interested relatives who want to be present at all the planning meetings.
  • Explore the pros and cons of using a revocable living trust in the will's stead and find out when it's a better option.
  • Explore the functions and mechanics of major trust structures - and make certain you choose the right tool for each job.
  • Give each provision full power with precise word choices - get sample forms to speed up the process.
  • Make sure your remarried and unmarried clients know the default inheritance laws and help them make sure the right beneficiaries are assigned.
  • Anticipate key tax issues, including individual income tax planning and trust taxation.
  • Phrase the fiduciary and beneficiary designations to leave no room for misinterpretation.
  • Help your clients make the tough medical decisions regarding long-term care, end-of-life and organ donation.
  • Learn how to verify and document the testator's competency to close the door on any potential will contests.

Abbreviated Agenda

  1. Basic Tax Concerns
  2. Documenting Long-Term Care, Incapacity, and End-of-Life Decisions
  3. Key Elements of Effective Wills
  4. Planning for Unmarried and Remarried Couples
  5. Trusts as Alternatives to Wills
  6. Ethics

Related Topics

Product ID 100829

Credit Details

Credits Available
Credit Status Total
Alabama CLE Approved 6 Total
Mississippi CLE Approved 6 Total
Select Jurisdiction
CLE

Agenda

All times are shown in

  1. Basic Tax Concerns

    1. Get Updated on Changing Legislation and Case Law
    2. Federal Estate and Gift Tax Update
    3. Assess the Impact of the State Estate Tax
    4. Individual Income Taxes - Issues You Need to Look At
    5. Generation Skipping Transfer Tax - Recent Changes
    6. Trust Taxation Basics
    7. Disclaimer Trusts
    8. Crummey Powers and the IRS
    9. Frequently Asked Questions About Fiduciary Taxes
    10. Tips for Calculating Tax Deductions
    11. Why a Comparison to Neighboring States' Taxes is Important

  2. Documenting Long-Term Care, Incapacity, and End-of-Life Decisions

    1. Basic Medicaid Planning
    2. Long-Term Care Options and Planning in a Nutshell
    3. Advance Medical Directives
    4. Powers of Attorney
    5. DNR Orders and Organ Donation Considerations

  3. Key Elements of Effective Wills

    1. Establishing Statutory Framework
    2. Types of Wills
    3. Verifying and Documenting the Testator's Competency
    4. Beneficiary Designations in Retirement Plans and Life Insurance
    5. Pension Distributions During and After Life
    6. Titling Assets
    7. Designating Fiduciaries
    8. Planning for Disabled Children
    9. Sample Will Verbiage
    10. Sample Forms
    11. Updating Will Documents

  4. Planning for Unmarried and Remarried Couples

    1. Pre- and Post-Marital Agreements
    2. Planning for Children From Previous Marriage(s)
    3. Estate Planning for Same Sex Couples

  5. Trusts as Alternatives to Wills

    1. When to Recommend a Trust Over a Will
    2. Types and Functions of Trusts
    3. Selecting Trustee(s)
    4. Choosing Trust Situs
    5. Trust Funding Basics
    6. Sample Forms

  6. Ethics

    1. Defining Who Your Client Is From the Start
    2. Handling Clients With Diminishing Mental Capacity
    3. Lawyers Acting as Fiduciaries
    4. Practicing Before the IRS
    5. Conflicts of Interest

Who Should Attend

This basic level online seminar offers foundational will and trust drafting skills that will benefit:

  • Attorneys
  • Paralegals
  • Trust Officers and Personal Representatives
  • Estate Planners
  • Accountants and CPAs
  • Tax Professionals

Speakers

Jennifer M McInerney
Jennifer M.
McInerney
McInerney Law
Page S Ellis
Page S.
Ellis
Mobile Probate Law
Kyle Massengale
Kyle
Massengale
Wilmer & Lee
C. Blake West
C. Blake
West
Vertical Estate Planning, LLC
M. Hampton Baxley
M. Hampton
Baxley
Ramsey, Baxley & McDougle
Speaker bio
Jennifer M McInerney

Jennifer M. McInerney

McInerney Law
Jennifer McInerney

is an attorney with McInerney Law, where her practice is focused in estate planning, primarily for families with special needs children. She is licensed to practice in Alabama and Mississippi. Ms. McInerney is the founding member and co-president of the Board of Directors of Special Siblings, which provides support for children with special needs siblings. She currently serves as the president of the Board of Directors of the Jefferson County Intellectual and Developmental Disability Authority. Ms. McInerney is a member of the Board of Directors for Down Syndrome Alabama, Shelby Humane Society and 25:35. She earned her B.A. degree, magna cum laude, as well as her M.A. degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Ms. McInerney earned her J.D. degree from Indiana University School of Law and her LL.M. degree in taxation from Washington University in St. Louis.

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Speaker bio
Page S Ellis

Page S. Ellis

Mobile Probate Law
Page Ellis

is a probate attorney with Page Stanley Ellis, P.C. in Mobile, Alabama. She has been practicing for 25 years with her primary areas of practice are probate, estate planning and real estate. Ms. Ellis earned her J.D. degree from the University of Alabama in 2000. She is an active member of the South Alabama Volunteer Lawyers Program.

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Speaker bio
Kyle Massengale

Kyle Massengale

Wilmer & Lee
Kyle Massengale

is an attorney with Wilmer & Lee in Decatur, Alabama. He has over 30 years of legal experience, primarily focusing on trusts and estates, real estate, corporate law, and trial advocacy. Mr. Massengale earned his J.D. degree from Faulkner University's Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. He is admitted to practice in Alabama and the U.S. Supreme Court. Mr. Massengale also holds a license with the Alabama Real Estate Commission as a Realtor. He frequently speaks at seminars for various communities and serves as a board member for NewLife Behavior Prison Ministry.

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Speaker bio
C. Blake West

C. Blake West

Vertical Estate Planning, LLC
C. Blake West

is a member of Vertical Estate Planning, LLC. He practices estate planning and elder law, including VA benefit, Medicaid planning, special needs provisions and asset protection. He also deals with estate related tax issues. Mr. Blake is a frequent lecturer and past vice president and president of Cullman County Bar Association. He was also on the Advisory Council for Elder Law Section of the Alabama State Bar in 2020-2022. He earned his B.S. degree from Auburn University and his J.D. degree from Birmingham School of Law.

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Speaker bio
M. Hampton Baxley

M. Hampton Baxley

Ramsey, Baxley & McDougle
M. Hampton Baxley

is a partner in the law firm of Ramsey, Baxley & McDougle in Dothan, and is a fourth-generation Dothan attorney having followed his great-grandfather, grandfather and father in the legal profession. His practice consists of real estate transactions, wills and estates, probate litigation (estates, conservatorship/guardianship), civil litigation, business/corporate transactions, and family law/domestic relations. Mr. Baxley is admitted to practice in Alabama and before the U.S. District Court for the Middle, Northern and Southern districts of Alabama. He has served as a bar commissioner for the 20th Judicial Circuit and president of the Houston County Bar Association. Mr. Baxley has also served as a member of the Alabama State Bar MCLE Commission and the Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee. He earned his B.S. degree from Birmingham-Southern College and his J.D. degree from the University of Alabama School of Law.

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