Bartal Law: Life & Legacy

Daphne Bartal focuses her law practice exclusively on Estate Planning, and its related work. As a mother to young children with various needs, she believes Estate Planning is a deeply personal matter, and understand that each individual and family has their own unique necessities . Attorney Bartal will help you navigate Estate Planning in plain English, so you can be educated about your options. She is dedicated to assist you in protecting your assets and desires so they will pass on to your intended beneficiaries, and that your final wishes are carried through. All while making the process easy. 

Daphne was educated on both the East and West Coasts of the U.S. While attending the University of North Carolina, she graduated from two honors programs, and completed three bachelors degrees in Industrial Engineering, Business and Accounting, and Political Science. She later moved to CA where she attended law school, and focused on her studies on taxation and estates. While working in the Estate, Trusts, and Tax fields post law school, she completed a three-year program earning her Master-in-Law in Taxation.

A frequent speaker at schools, house of worships, businesses, and community centers Daphne enjoys educating individuals, families, business owners, and seniors on the importance of estate planning.  She is admitted to practice law in New York, D.C, and California. 

In her spare time Daphne enjoys spending time with her children, singing Opera, reading, organizing,  hosting guests, and appreciate the beauty of nature.  

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Bartal Law P.C. is a boutique women-owned law firm based in Queens, and Long Island New York. The firm services Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Bronx, and Staten Island. It also service Nassau and Suffolk counties of Long Island. And are happy to serve clients from the Hudson to other parts of the State of New York, as well as residents of D.C, and California. We prepare comprehensive estate plans for all types of individuals and families. We take a proactive approach in educating you on your option, so your Legacy and wealth can be protected and carried on.

We have a streamlined 4-step process designed to allow for counseling and guidance by me and to have your trust and related estate planning documents created and signed in 6-8 weeks.

• The first step is to attend your Peace of Mind Planning Session. In this 1-hour Zoom consultation, you’ll share your needs and questions, and we will go over your initial intake questionnaire response. You will complete this initial intake via a secure online portal, and we will provide your unique link. During the session, you will learn about your options and our flat fees. If you decide to hire me, the $350.00 fee paid when scheduling the Peace of Mind Planning Session will be deducted from the flat-rate plan you choose. If you decide to move forward, we’ll email you an Engagement Letter and invoice, both of which can be executed online.

• Next is your Estate Plan Design Meeting. In this 90-plus minute Zoom meeting, we will work together to design your trust and other estate planning documents, using the information provided in your Family Legacy Profile. After this session, I’ll draft your plan documents.

• A review Zoom meeting will be conducted, or a guided review video will be provided. In this review process, we will go over any changes or updates you’d like to make. When everything is ready, we will coordinate an in-person Signing Ceremony.

• Your Signing Ceremony is where you will sign your documents with the proper legal formalities in front of two witnesses and a Notary. We will coordinate the location of this signing ceremony, either at your home or in an office setting. Following the execution of the documents, you will receive a binder with your plan documents to keep at your secure location. We provide a complimentary 1-3 year review of your plan and are available to assist with any future planning, as well as probate and trust administration needs.

What can I expect from my Peace of Mind Planning Session?

An attorney who listens without interrupting and makes sure you fully understand your options before making any decisions! I wouldn’t be doing my job otherwise. It’s very important to me that you feel heard and have your questions answered. We’ll also review our process, flat fees, and overall client experience so you know exactly what you’re getting and what the investment will be.

What are the initial steps to get started?

When you are ready to move forward—whether at your Peace of Mind Planning Session, after completing your family intake questionnaire, or later—let me know. We’ll send you an Engagement Letter via DocuSign and an invoice via our secure online payment provider, GravityLegal. Once these housekeeping items are complete, you’ll schedule your Estate Plan Design Meeting.

When you are ready to move forward—whether at your Peace of Mind Planning Session, after completing your family intake questionnaire, or later—let us know. We’ll send you an engagement letter via DocuSign and an invoice via our secure online payment provider, GravityLegal. Once these items are taken care of, you’ll schedule your Estate Plan Design Meeting.

Let me start by saying what we do NOT need! We do NOT need account statements, social security numbers, or tax returns. We DO need information on what kind of assets you own (house, retirement account, life insurance, etc.), their relative value, and how they are titled (jointly, individually, etc.) Beyond that, we simply need answers to questions about your personal estate planning preferences, including:

* Who you would want raising your minor children if something happened to you and your spouse or partner

* Who you want to be in charge of your children’s money until they are old enough to mange it themselves

* Who you want making medical and financial decisions for you in the event of your incapacity

Don’t worry if you don’t have the answers to these questions right away! You’ll have plenty of time to think things over throughout the process.

Estate planning is the process of getting legal documents in place so that your chosen individuals are appointed to take care of you, your children, your assets, and your finances in the event of your death or incapacity. The process also involves naming the people you want to inherit your assets when you are gone. An “estate plan” is a bundle of all the documents needed to accomplish these objectives.

If you don’t currently have a will or trust, you may think you don’t have an estate plan….but you do. It’s just that the state of Illinois has written it for you! All states have a default plan for your family and assets in the event of your incapacity or death. That’s the plan you have now. Estate planning is “opting out” of the default plan and putting your own wishes in place.

It depends! Estate planning is not one size fits all, so it’s hard for us to give you a quote without knowing more about you. Even if you believe your situation is relatively simple, there are likely nuances you are not considering. We discuss our fees and process at length in the Peace of Mind Planning Session, after we have counseled you on all your options. We do not discuss our fees outside the Peace of Mind Planning Session.

We understand that cost is an important factor in choosing an attorney, and that estate planning is a significant investment for many. It is our goal to be as transparent and fair as possible. For that reason, we offer flat fees as opposed to billing by the hour, so you know exactly what your investment will be.

Finally, we will only recommend planning with us if the amount you would save by doing an estate plan is greater than our fee.

You have two options with your estate planning: a will-based plan, or a living trust-based plan. A living trust is a document where you appoint a chosen individual to manage your assets should you become incapacitated and distribute them to your family at your death. It is almost always preferrable to a will because it is designed to avoid the time, expense, and publicity of probate, which a will cannot avoid.

It comes as a surprise to many that wills do not avoid probate court…they guarantee it!

I will go over the difference between a will and a living revocable trust in depth during the Peace of Mind Planning Session and you can decide what is best for you and your loved ones.