Estate Planning

A will written for another state can fail in Louisiana.La. C.C. arts. 1575 & 1577

The foundation of most plans is a valid Louisiana testament — either a notarial testament, executed before a notary and two witnesses, or an olographic testament, entirely handwritten, dated, and signed. Louisiana’s formalities are exacting, and a testament that does not meet them can be declared invalid; the 2025 reforms refined those very requirements.

Aertker Legal drafts testaments that satisfy Louisiana’s formal requirements precisely, name executors and tutors, establish usufructs, and dispose of the estate the way you intend — not the way the default rules would.

In Louisiana, a trust is a powerful tool — but not the one out-of-state advisors assume.La. R.S. 9:1721 et seq.

Louisiana recognizes trusts under its own Trust Code, distinct from the common-law rules used elsewhere. Used correctly, trusts protect beneficiaries, provide for those who cannot manage an inheritance, shield assets from creditors, and even hold a forced heir’s legitime within statutory limits. Used as a copy-and-paste ‘living trust’ imported from another state, they often do not work as promised.

The firm designs revocable, irrevocable, special-needs, and spendthrift trusts that fit Louisiana law and the family’s actual goals.

• Revocable and irrevocable trusts
• Special-needs trusts
• Spendthrift and asset-protection provisions
• Trusts holding a forced heir’s legitime
• Trustee selection and administration counsel

The document that lets someone act for you when you cannot.La. C.C. art. 2989 et seq.

A power of attorney — in Louisiana, a mandate or procuration — lets a trusted agent manage your financial and legal affairs. A durable mandate continues in effect even if you become incapacitated, avoiding the need for a court-supervised interdiction. The scope can be broad or narrow, effective immediately or upon a defined event.

Aertker Legal drafts durable financial mandates tailored to your circumstances, with the authority your agent will actually need — and the limits that protect you.

Decide now, so your family is not forced to guess later.La. R.S. 40:1151 et seq.

A complete plan speaks for you when you cannot speak for yourself. A living will declaration states your wishes regarding life-sustaining treatment, and a healthcare power of attorney names the person you trust to make medical decisions on your behalf. Paired with a HIPAA authorization, they spare your family the anguish of guessing — and the courts of deciding.

The firm prepares advance directives, medical mandates, and HIPAA authorizations as a coordinated set, so your healthcare wishes are clear and legally effective.

Louisiana reserves part of your estate for certain heirs — plan with that, not against it.La. C.C. art. 1493

Louisiana is the only state that retains forced heirship: a child who is 23 or younger, or who is permanently incapacitated, is entitled to a protected share of the estate — one-fourth for a single forced heir, one-half for two or more. A plan that ignores the legitime invites a successful challenge; a plan built around it can satisfy the law while still achieving your goals, often by granting a surviving spouse a usufruct or placing the legitime in trust.

The firm builds forced-heirship and usufruct planning into wills and donations from the start — and coordinates it with Louisiana’s community-property rules and any matrimonial agreement.

Giving during your life can be as deliberate as giving at your death.La. C.C. art. 1467 et seq.

Louisiana law allows transfers both inter vivos (during life) and mortis causa (at death), each with its own formalities — a donation of immovable property, for instance, must be made by authentic act. Thoughtful lifetime giving can provide for loved ones, transition a family business, and simplify the eventual succession.

Aertker Legal structures donations and lifetime transfers that accomplish your goals while respecting forced-heirship and reimbursement rules.