It is important that you protect all of your assets. Since we are now in the digital age, most of us forget that we are accumulating digital assets with each email account, social media page and online storage account we open up. Therefore, before you meet with your estate planning attorney, make sure you prepare your digital assets by following these quick and easy planning steps.
- Create a full list of the types of digital assets you have. These can include computers, software, social media accounts, email accounts, online storage accounts, online shopping accounts (i.e., Amazon or eBay).
- On the list of assets you have written down, make a detailed list about what you want to happen to each one. Do you want them closed out? Do you want them downloaded and stored? No matter what you want to happen, you need to specify how each digital asset will be managed after your death.
- Go through each account and write down the username, password and any other additional security information required to access them. This is especially important if someone will need to access these accounts to remove information, change it or close down your accounts altogether.
- Lastly, you will want to select a person to inherit your digital assets. Not one person has to inherit them all, but you do have to specify who will receive each digital asset.
Stephen A. Unsworth is admitted to practice in both Vermont and Maine, and has more than 30 years of experience in estate planning and business law. His mission is to provide quality estate planning services, including assistance with Living Trusts, Wills, Medicaid Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Powers of Attorney, Special Needs Planning, and Family Limited Partnerships.
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