Will Preparation Attorney in Jefferson County
Decide Now, So They Don’t Have To
Our will preparation attorneys in Jefferson County, Colorado, also handle probate, so we draft your will knowing where wills tend to go wrong.
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Reviews From Colorado Families
What Goes Into a Colorado Will
What a Will Actually Controls
August & Suchowski prepares wills for families throughout Jefferson County, Colorado. A will is essentially a letter to the judge. It directs what happens to property that passes through probate, and nothing else.
That distinction matters more than most people expect. Retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death accounts pass by beneficiary designation, the named-person instruction sitting on the account itself. Jointly titled property often transfers on its own. So we inventory what you own before drafting, because a will written without that step can contradict the accounts it was meant to cover.
Parents, Homeowners, and First-Time Planners
Most people who sit down with our Jefferson County estate planning team have never made a will. They own a house, maybe a retirement account, and they have children who would be affected if something happened tomorrow.
The reasons they finally call are specific. A baby arrived. A parent died and the family watched an estate go badly. Somebody remarried and the old document names the wrong person.
Drafted by Attorneys Who Handle Probate
Michael Suchowski leads estate planning at August & Suchowski and has practiced law since 2000. Elizabeth August runs the firm's probate practice from our Wheat Ridge office, which means every will we draft is informed by watching documents get tested in Jefferson County estates.
That combination is the point. A firm doing planning alone never sees which clauses create problems later. Both attorneys are licensed in Colorado, and estate planning and probate are the only work this firm takes.
When People Finally Make a Will
The trigger is almost always a life event rather than a date on the calendar. A new child, a remarriage, a house purchase, a diagnosis in the family. Any of those changes who should inherit and who should be in charge.
Our Wheat Ridge office responds to new inquiries within one business day, and the first consultation is free. Will preparation is typically handled on a flat fee, so you know the cost before any drafting begins.
Serving Jefferson County and Beyond
Will preparation runs out of our Wheat Ridge office, covering Lakewood, Arvada, Golden, Westminster, and Edgewater within about ten miles. Michael meets clients by video as well, so distance rarely decides anything.
Signing is the exception. Colorado wills require formalities that happen in person, and we handle that step at the office. Wills form part of the broader work described on our estate planning attorney page, alongside trusts and powers of attorney.
Why us?
Families Helped Across Colorado
Years Combined legal experience
Locations: Wheat ridge & Fort collins
The Best Time
To Plan is Before You Need It
Most people call us after something happens. A diagnosis, a friend's family fighting over an estate, a new grandchild. You don't have to wait for one of those. Tell us what's on your mind, and we'll tell you honestly whether you need a plan yet.
How the Estate Planning Process Works with Us
free call
Tell us about your family and assets, and we will map the options.
clear plan
We draft documents that match your actual situation, not a generic online template.
Signed & Funded
We make sure the plan is executed properly and actually holds your assets.
The August & Suchowski Difference
FAQs
Often it doesn't. If a Colorado account names a payable-on-death beneficiary, that designation controls and the will has no effect on it. Families are regularly surprised by this after a death. We review every account during drafting so your documents and your beneficiary forms agree.
Colorado's intestacy laws decide who inherits, meaning the state's default rules apply instead of your wishes. The estate still generally goes through probate, and the court appoints someone to administer it. That result often surprises blended families in particular.
Yes. A will is where Colorado parents nominate who would raise their minor children, and a court gives that nomination real weight. It's the single most common reason young parents call us. We talk through backups as well as first choices.
An online template can produce a valid document, and for some situations that's genuinely enough. The risk is what a form doesn't ask about, like a business interest, a blended family, or accounts that already name someone else. We review those specifics before anything gets drafted.
There's no set schedule, but certain events matter more than the calendar. A marriage, a divorce, a new child, a move to another state, or a significant change in assets are all worth a review. A plan signed once and never revisited is the pattern that causes problems.
Without a Will, Colorado Decides for You
Estate Planning Attorney in Wheat Ridge, Colorado
We're on Kipling Street just north of West 41st Avenue, a few minutes from the Kipling exit off I-70. Free parking is available on-site, and the suite is on the second floor with elevator access from the lobby. We also keep a second office in Fort Collins for clients in Northern Colorado.