About Hickman Menashe

We are an estate planning firm. We do everything from helping people with very modest estates all the way up to people with several million dollars, and everything in between.

Regardless of the size of one’s estate, we feel that everybody should have a comprehensive, well-thought-out estate plan.

In addition to that, we help disabled individuals and families with a disabled family member by creating special needs trusts to hold assets that the disabled person may receive through gifts or inheritance.

For people who don’t have any planning in place, we represent individuals who have been appointed as guardians. For others, whether family members or professionals, we walk them through that process and help them with the court reporting that’s required.

Of course, we also help at the end of life when a client passes away and the family is administering either the estate or the trust. We guide them through that process and help ensure that the client’s wishes are carried out.

When it comes to estate planning, we do most of our work on a flat-fee basis.

For most people, an estate plan consists of a will, durable powers of attorney for finances and health care, and sometimes a revocable living trust and living will, also known as a health care directive.

We do most of our estate planning on a flat-fee basis, which allows us to tell clients during the first meeting exactly what their legal fees will be.

We’ve found that clients really appreciate working with us on a flat-fee basis. It allows us to spend the time we need to fully understand their goals and make sure those wishes are reflected in the appropriate legal documents.

When the process is complete, clients are typically comfortable with the decisions they’ve made and understand the estate plan they’ve put in place.

What does it take to be successful in estate planning?

Listening. That’s the secret.

You have to listen to your clients—what they’re saying and what they’re not saying. You need to understand their underlying goals, because people don’t always know exactly what they need.

Someone might come in and say, “I need a trust.” My first question is always, “Why?” What is your concern? What are you trying to solve?

Being a good estate planning attorney means digging into those concerns. Why are we doing this now? What changed? What’s driving this decision?

It’s about building relationships, truly understanding your clients, and addressing their questions in detail. Many attorneys draft documents and explain the big picture, but don’t go deeper. I want my clients to fully understand what they’re signing before they sign it.

Success comes from working closely with clients, understanding their goals, developing a plan together, and making sure they know how to carry that plan forward throughout their lives.

Estate planning is never “one and done.” You don’t create a will in your 20s, put it in a drawer, and forget about it. Life changes, and your plan needs to evolve with it.

My goal is to build lasting relationships so that when something changes, clients come back and say, “Here’s what’s new—what do we need to update?”

I don’t see myself as someone who just drafts documents. I build relationships, and I create plans.