Organized in a simple easy to follow question answer format your worry free legacy covers everything you need to know about estate planning in illinois in this book youll find answers to all your estate planning questions including what is a will what is a trust what benefits do they offer why do i need estate planning. Estate planning what you need to know but ensure that your legacy lives on with those you love once your estate plan is in place youll need to revisit it from time to time and keep . Your estate is the collection of everything you own money property and other personal belongings no matter how much you own those things will need to go somewhere after you pass away thats where estate planning comes in estate planning allows you to prepare for what happens to your estate when you pass away. You need to make a list of the loved ones you want to consider in your estate planning because you may need to use special tools or take additional steps to protect certain family members or friends. Whether you call it estate planning or legacy planning transferring wealth from estate to beneficiary is often far from simple just dealing with the probate process alone can take months sometimes years many legacy or estate plans will therefore rely on trusts to avoid the probate process altogether