Attainment Legal focuses on estate plans for individuals and families, creating documents like wills, trusts, minor child guardianships, and healthcare directives based on your family’s unique circumstances.

We pride ourselves on making a plan that keeps your loved ones out of court and out of conflict.

To work with Attainment Legal, schedule a 15-minute call with Claire to better understand our planning process and determine if we’re the right estate planning firm for you.

You can also send a message through our contact form.

The old way of doing estate planning was to hand the client a pile of copy and pasted documents that (frankly) didn’t work when the client (or their loved ones) actually needed them. Life changes but the wills just sat in a drawer getting dusty.

We have systems to make sure your plans are up to date and ready when you need them. We have scheduled check ins every three years (for free!) so we stay in touch and your plan works when you need it.

Attainment Legal offers a flat fee model where the client chooses the right level of service based on their specific concerns. Since we don’t bill hourly, we can take time to answer your questions and get a plan that works for you and your family.

Attainment Legal’s process is structured but collaborative. This makes sure we learn about you first, make a plan and then get all the right documents signed, filed and funded, so that the plan works.

We’ll have a minimum of two 1-hour meetings, reviewing information that you have provided and co-designing a strategy that meets your goals.

We have systems in place to make sure your voice is heard, your questions are answered, and your final documents reflect your family’s needs and goals.

Depending on the complexity of your circumstances, we will complete the initial document drafting and signing in 4-6 weeks, with additional time needed for trust funding.

Attainment Legal is based in Missoula, Montana, and serves clients in Western Montana. We can also do online consultations for those throughout Montana looking for estate planning services.

Attainment Legal is a boutique, by appointment only, firm. During our 15-minute consultation we can arrange a place and time to meet that works for you.

We offer limited probate and trust administration services for current clients.

Due to high staff time required, for new clients we only consider probate and trust administration for estates over $2 million in value.

An estate planning attorney is a lawyer who helps client plan for what happens to their assets (home, money, retirement accounts; for example) when they die or become incapacitated.

An estate planning attorney will review your finances and will ask intimate questions about your family dynamics, so it is important to engage an attorney you feel comfortable with and can trust.

Generally, if someone dies without a will or a trust then who inherits their assets (their “stuff”) at their death is determined by state law.

Anyone who would like to have more say in who receives their assets after their death could benefit from working with an estate planning attorney.

Estate planning attorneys can also help explain tax consequences and reduce administrative burden (and the time to receive inherited property or funds) by planning for a clean transition of title from one generation to the next.

Estate planning attorneys can assist with more complicated matters, as well, such as providing fairly for all children in blended families, planning for special needs family members, preserving government benefits, and understanding Medicaid eligibility.

Probate is the legal process of formally gathering the assets of the deceased person and distributing them according to the person’s will or according to the laws of that state. This includes paying debts and taxes owed by the deceased person.

Probate is generally supervised by a local court judge and may be a public process, as court records are generally available for anyone to see. Probate typically takes many months (and sometimes years) to complete.

Generally, if someone dies with no estate plan in place or just a will, their estate will go through the probate process.

Having an estate plan in place (a valid will or trust) may significantly reduce the time and cost of the probate process, and can avoid conflicts between family members by clearing expressing the deceased individual’s wishes.