Estate Plans and Successions
Estate Plans
Your estate plan isn't a stack of documents in a drawer. It's the set of decisions that determines who raises your kids, who manages your money if you can't, and whether your family ends up in court after you're gone.
We take the time to understand your situation — your family, your assets, your concerns — and build a plan around it. That means wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and living wills drafted under the right state's law, whether that's Louisiana, Mississippi, or Texas. It also means we tell you when something needs updating, because a plan that doesn't keep up with your life isn't really a plan.
What we handle:
- Last wills and testaments (testate succession planning)
- Revocable and irrevocable trusts
- Powers of attorney and living wills (health care directives)
- Louisiana successions — testate and intestate
- Judgments of possession
- Succession disputes, including forced heirship issues
- Sale or assignment of hereditary rights before judgment of possession
Louisiana Successions Work Differently
Louisiana follows civil law, not common law like the other 49 states — meaning succession, forced heirship, and community property rules here don't match what you'd find in most legal guidance written for a national audience. If you're handling a succession, or you inherited property tied up in one, you need someone who practices under the Louisiana Civil Code specifically, not general estate law.
Who we work with:
When your estate plan touches taxes, investments, or insurance, we coordinate directly with your CPA and financial advisor. You don't have to play middleman or wonder if everyone's on the same page. If you don't already have those relationships, we'll point you in the right direction.
What Can You Expect
Ron Ward has practiced for over 25 years across four states. The firm is small by design. You'll work directly with your attorney, not a rotating cast of associates. We return calls, we explain things in plain English, and we don't bill you for the privilege of being confused.
If you've been putting this off, that's normal. Most people do. But the best time to get your plan in place is before you need it.