Call: 314.588.9500 SEARCH SITE:


Practice Areas

Estate Planning and Probate

Probate is the legal process of resolving all claims and distributing a deceased person’s property, or estate, according to a valid will. A will has to be “probated” by a court, which means the court has to confirm the validity of a deceased person’s will so that interested parties can rely on its authenticity.

Estate planning is the process of accumulating and distributing a person’s estate in a way that maximizes what is transferred to the estate owner’s intended beneficiaries while minimizing taxes and probate court involvement.

Understanding Wills, Trusts, and Other Probate and Estate Planning Tools
Weiss Attorneys at Law
attorneys have years of experience drafting wills and trusts for individuals and business owners. We can advise you on a range of probate and estate planning tools, including durable powers of attorney, medical care powers of attorney, elder law planning, establishing guardianships, conservatorships, living wills, contested wills and probate administration.

This is a sampling of the probate and estate planning law services Weiss Attorneys at Law provides to individuals:

  • Wills
  • Trusts
  • Durable Powers of Attorney
  • Medical Care Powers of Attorney
  • Elder Law Planning
  • Guardianships
  • Conservatorships
  • Living Wills
  • Probate Administration
  • Will Contests
  • Trust Disputes

Related articles:


Handicap the Horses: Place a Sure Bet With a Qualified Spousal Trust
Assume that you are married to a self-proclaimed horse handicapper.  Your spouse has acquired this talent unbeknownst to you and has spent considerable time perfecting his or her skill. The...
Read more...



Congressional Magic or Mischievousness: Is the Federal Estate Tax Repealed, or Isn’t It?
In spite of what you may have heard about taxes in 2010, we believe Ben Franklin's sardonic proverb, with Will Rogers' prescient addition, still holds true - this year more than ever. Nothing is...
Read more...



Cocktail Party Small Talk, or What Happens if I Don’t Have a Will?
As the joke goes, the medical doctor asks the lawyer if he gets pestered about everyday legal problems at cocktail parties, the same as the doctor does about all sorts of everyday physical ailments....
Read more...



Joint Tenancy Accounts and Safe Deposit Boxes: “Will Substitutes” or “Will They Substitute for a Will?”
You may be a party to a joint checking or savings account – most married people are and many seniors have children or other loved ones on one or more bank accounts. In choosing the type of account...
Read more...



Proper Use of Advance Directives Beyond End-of-Life Decisions in Missouri
In the media today, much emphasis has been placed on using “Advance Health Care Directives” to aid in making end-of-life decisions after a person is incapacitated. However, little is commonly...
Read more...