Wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and complete estate plans for Alabama families, built to protect your assets and the people you love. Serving Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Hoover, and across Alabama.
Schedule a Consultation Call (205) 202-9801Estate planning is one of the most important things you can do for your family, and one of the most commonly postponed. At Colvin & Sawyer Law Offices, we help families across Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Homewood, Alabaster, and throughout Alabama build estate plans that protect their assets, honor their wishes, and spare their loved ones unnecessary pain and expense.
"Estate planning is not about planning for death. It is about protecting the people you love, making sure that if something happens to you, they are taken care of exactly the way you intend."
Ensures your assets go to the right people, names guardians for minor children, and designates a trusted executor to carry out your wishes under Alabama law.
Avoids Alabama probate entirely, keeps your estate private, and ensures seamless management of your assets if you become incapacitated. See: Living Trust services.
Names a trusted person to manage your financial affairs if you become incapacitated, avoiding the costly court-supervised guardianship process.
Designates someone to make medical decisions on your behalf when you cannot, ensuring your wishes are honored by the right person.
Documents your specific wishes for end-of-life medical treatment, relieving your family of impossible decisions and ensuring your values guide your care.
We review all life insurance, retirement accounts, and financial accounts to ensure designations are current and coordinated with your overall estate plan.
If you die without a will, Alabama's intestate succession laws determine who inherits, and the results often surprise families. Your spouse may not inherit everything. Your assets must go through public, costly probate court. The court names a guardian for your minor children. Unmarried partners receive nothing. All of this is avoidable with a proper estate plan. Read: What Happens If You Die Without a Will in Alabama?
Ready to protect your family with a proper Alabama estate plan?
Call Colvin & Sawyer Law Offices at (205) 202-9801 or send us a message. We serve families across Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, and all of Alabama.Valerie Sawyer focuses her practice on estate planning and probate, helping Alabama families put the right documents in place before they are needed and guiding them through probate when they are. A former special education teacher and Civil Air Patrol Squadron Commander, she is known for translating complicated choices into plain language, and she is a dedicated advocate for Alabama veterans and their families.
Founding attorney Christopher Colvin works alongside Valerie on plans involving business interests and succession, bringing his small business and contract law background to owners who need their company and their estate planned together.
"Valerie guided me through the probate and estate planning process with patience, clarity, and genuine care. Every question I had was answered promptly, and I always felt confident that my best interests were being looked after. I highly recommend Attorney Valerie Sawyer to anyone in need of expert, trustworthy estate planning or probate services."
Without an estate plan, Alabama's intestate succession laws determine who inherits, which may not match your wishes. A proper plan ensures assets go to the right people, names guardians for minor children, and can help your family avoid Alabama probate entirely.
A basic Alabama estate plan includes a will, durable power of attorney, healthcare power of attorney, and advance directive. Many families also benefit from a revocable living trust to avoid probate and provide seamless incapacity management.
Review after any major life event: marriage, divorce, birth of a child, death of a beneficiary or agent, or significant asset changes. As a general rule, review every three to five years even without major changes.
Both do different jobs. A will directs who inherits and names guardians for minor children but still goes through probate. A revocable living trust avoids probate and manages your assets if you become incapacitated. Many Alabama families use both, a trust as the core plan with a pour-over will as a safety net.
Alabama intestate succession law decides. A surviving spouse does not automatically inherit everything, the estate is split with children or parents under a fixed formula, and unmarried partners receive nothing. See: What Happens If You Die Without a Will in Alabama?
Yes. A properly funded revocable living trust, along with beneficiary designations and joint ownership, can pass most or all assets outside probate. A will alone does not avoid probate. See: How to Avoid Probate in Alabama.
Christopher Colvin and Valerie Sawyer serve clients throughout Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Homewood, Alabaster, Pelham, Helena, Chelsea, Trussville, Gardendale, Bessemer, and Montgomery.
Schedule a Consultation Call (205) 202-9801