Flat fee structure means no surprise costs.
Custom solutions to protect your legacy.
7 generations in Denton, Texas.
Hunter Sargent, PLLC is Securing Legacies in North Texas
Hunter Sargent, PLLC is Denton’s premier estate planning lawyer and business planning law firm. We’ll prepare your will, trust, and business planning so you can rest easy knowing you’ve secured your legacy for generations to come. We have the wisdom and skill to plan legacies of all sizes.
Everyone needs estate planning – the good news is it’s never too early and if you’re reading this, it’s not too late. If you only had one week left, would you get an estate plan? If the answer is “Yes”, you should already have an estate plan.
We’re happy to accommodate you so you feel safe – just let us know about your requests before your appointment and we’ll see you soon.
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Practice Areas
Protect your legacy and your loved ones by making your wishes legally binding.
If you’ve just lost a loved one, their estate may need to go through the probate process to transfer their assets to their heirs. Many times, the process can be mitigated or avoided entirely.
Wills are the most common estate planning strategy in Texas. At its core, a will simply states who will be in charge of your legacy and who will inherit your legacy.
Trusts aren’t just for tax planning (although they’re great for that, too). If you want to make things easier and faster for your loved ones, you need a trust.
If your legacy involves disability, privacy concerns, potential conflict, or blended families, protect your assets with our cutting-edge legal strategies.
Your business is your life’s work. Protecting your legacy is simply too important to rely on someone who doesn’t focus on business planning.
LLCs are the workhorse of modern business entities. Flexible, dynamic, and powerful, the LLC can be molded into your vision for your business or investment company.
The S-Corporation is a tried-and-true mainstay business entity. They can be easily managed and traded so you can use your expertise to grow and attract investors.
Partnerships are “business marriages” that simply must be planned correctly from the beginning.
If you need a license from the State of Texas to do business, you need a professional practice.
If you’re interested in using a lady bird deed, take some time to learn about its distinct advantages and disadvantages before getting started.
Medicaid planning helps you cover the costs of long-term care, and you can do so while keeping valuable assets like your house in the family even after your passing.
A trust that once in place, can’t be changed without the beneficiary’s permission or a court’s approval.
A testamentary trust is one that is established in a person’s last will and testament. It is not created until after the person has passed away.
GRATs are typically most beneficial to wealthy individuals whose assets will be subject to significant estate tax liability when they die.
Generation-skipping trusts allow a grantor to skips over their children to pass the inheritance to their grandchildren or another young person.
Our Wealth Protection plan will depend on your needs and goals, but each plan will help you maximize growth, control, and distribution of your assets.
An FLP is a legal arrangement in which a family business or asset is placed into a partnership and owned by multiple family members.
The trust administration process can be a challenging task, but it is an important responsibility for the trust administrator or trustees.
Business succession planning is a strategy that business owners use to pass down leadership roles to others.
As business attorneys our role is to ensure everything done at the company is legal and above board.
Schedule a meeting now To Start
The best time to plan your legacy was 10 years ago. The next best time is today. Everyone needs estate planning – the good news is it’s never too early and if you’re reading this, it’s not too late.
Estate Planning
Protect your legacy and your loved ones by making your wishes legally binding. There’s no such thing as a simple estate, but that doesn’t mean estate planning has to be difficult.
We don’t dabble in estate planning – it’s what we do.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Estate Planning
Probate
If you’ve just lost a loved one, their estate may need to go through the probate process to transfer their assets to their heirs. Many times, the process can be mitigated or avoided entirely.
Choosing the wrong probate attorney could be disastrous for you and your loved one’s legacy.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Probate
Wills
Wills are the most common estate planning strategy in Texas. At its core, a will simply states who will be in charge of your legacy and who will inherit your legacy.
For many people, the simplicity of a will is just what they need to start the estate planning process.
LEARN MORE ABOUT WILLS
Trusts
Trusts aren’t just for tax planning (although they’re great for that, too). If you want to make things easier and faster for your loved ones, you need a trust.
Trusts are extremely popular for people who haven’t updated their will in over 5 years, people moving to Texas, and people who have no estate planning at all.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Trusts
Asset Protection Planning
Divorce, predators, and lawsuits threaten those you love the most. Estate taxes are a constant fear for even the humblest legacies.
If your legacy involves disability, privacy concerns, potential conflict, or blended families, protect your assets with our cutting-edge legal strategies and rest easy knowing you’ve secured your legacy for generations to come.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Asset Protection Planning
Business Planning
Your business is your life’s work. Protecting your legacy is simply too important to rely on someone who doesn’t focus on business planning.
We’ve mastered the legalese so you don’t have to.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Business Planning
LLC Planning
LLCs are the workhorse of modern business entities. Flexible, dynamic, and powerful, the LLC can be molded into your vision for your business or investment company.
You only have one chance to plan your LLC the best possible way for your legacy.
LEARN MORE ABOUT LLC Planning
S-Corp Planning
The S-Corporation is a tried-and-true mainstay business entity. They can be easily managed and traded so you can use your expertise to grow and attract investors at every step.
Taking a wrong step setting up or maintaining your S-Corp can be disastrous.
LEARN MORE ABOUT S-Corp Planning
Partnership Planning
Partnerships are “business marriages” that simply must be planned correctly from the beginning.
When you don’t need a business entity as formal as an LLC or corporation, a partnership may be exactly what you’re looking for.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Partnership Planning
Professional Practice Planning
If you need a license from the State of Texas to do business, you need a professional practice. Professionals deal with unique challenges when it comes to ownership, retirement, and asset protection.
Not only will your business rely on the design of your corporate structure, but your license will too.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Professional Practice Planning
Lady Bird Deeds
As bizarre as it is, the government won’t let your death stop them from taxing you. According to the IRS, the estate tax is “a tax on your right to transfer property at your death,” which is one of the reasons it’s often referred to as a “death tax.” This means that when a person dies, the federal and/or state government will assess the estate’s worth and claim a percentage in a process called probate.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Lady Bird Deeds
Medicaid Planning
You may immediately think: “I don’t need Medicaid, and, more importantly, I don’t qualify for it.” But you might be surprised.
While it may be true that you don’t, by true definition, “need” the free financial assistance that Medicaid can provide, you can still benefit from it and use it to protect your assets for your family.
Irrevocable Living Trusts
An Irrevocable Living Trusts is trust that, once in place, can’t be changed without the beneficiary’s permission or a court’s approval.
We can help you design an irrevocable living trust to protect certain assets from being taxed and penalized.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Irrevocable Living Trusts
Testamentary Trusts
A testamentary trust is one that is established in a person’s last will and testament. It is not created until after the person has passed away.
Additionally, a will may contain more than one testamentary trust.
Although they play an important role in wealth management, testamentary trusts are not for everyone.
GRATs
GRATs aren’t an ideal estate planning tool for everyone. They’re typically the most beneficial to wealthy individuals whose assets will be subject to significant estate tax liability when they die.
Despite being irrevocable trusts rather than living trusts, GRATs allow for substitution of assets, as long as the value of the assets is matched by the value of replacement assets.
LEARN MORE ABOUT GRATs
Generation-Skipping Trusts
A generation-skipping trust is a special kind of fiduciary arrangement by which a grantor (the owner) passes down assets to a later generation that is not their children.
The grantor skips over their children to pass the inheritance to their grandchildren or another young person, which is how this trust earned its name.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Generation-Skipping Trusts
Wealth Protection Legacy Plan
Our Wealth Protection plan connects you with our vast experience with high-net-worth clients and our most closely trusted advisors including CPAs, insurance specialists, and financial advisors.
Every Wealth Protection plan will be different depending on your needs and goals, but each plan will help you maximize growth, control, and distribution of your assets.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Wealth Protection Legacy Plan
Family Limited Partnerships (FLPs)
A family limited partnership (FLP) is a legal arrangement in which a family business or asset is placed into a partnership and owned by multiple family members.
The partnership is typically established by a parent or senior family member, who transfers ownership of the business or asset to the partnership in exchange for an ownership interest in the partnership, known as a “unit.”
LEARN MORE ABOUT Family Limited Partnerships (FLPs)
Trust Administration
The trust administration process can be a challenging task, but it is an important responsibility for the trust administrator or trustees.
By following the terms of the trust document and acting in the best interests of the beneficiaries, they can help ensure that the trust assets are managed and distributed according to the wishes of the trust creator.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Trust Administration
Business Succession Planning
As a successful entrepreneur, you’ve put your heart and soul into your business. You’ve sacrificed and made the hard calls, and all of your diligence has paid off. But before you can enjoy all the fruits of your labor, you have one more big decision to make: What will happen to your company after you’re gone?
If you want your business to be a source of financial security for your family for years to come, you need to set a plan in motion now.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Business Succession Planning
Business Lawyer
Think back to a mistake you’ve made with your business, something you wish you could do over. Don’t you wish there had been someone there to guide you in the right direction?
In a sense, that’s what a business lawyer is: Someone who checks over your plans to help you avoid legal pitfalls and position your company for long-term success.
LEARN MORE ABOUT Business Lawyer
Frequently Asked Questions
Hunter Sargent, PLLC is located inside the Alagood, Cartwright, Burke building at 319 W Oak St., Denton, Texas 76201.
You can schedule an appointment directly to Hunter Sargent’s calendar here, or you can call us at (940) 594-7754. You can also request more information via email at [email protected].
No. We offer phone and virtual consultations via Zoom, Skype, and Teams in addition to in-person meetings. Schedule an appointment directly to Hunter Sargent’s calendar here
Your initial consultation will be free. The fee for your matter will be discussed at the consultation, as well as a timeline and what you can expect from us.
Hunter Sargent was licensed to practice law in 2014. Estate planning and business planning has always been a part of Hunter Sargent’s practice.
We accept cash, checks, certified funds, wire transfer, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. Contact us to make your payment online.
We accept cash, checks, certified funds, wire transfer, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. Contact us to make your payment online.
The answer depends on too many factors to list here. We offer flexible payment options so you can get your estate plan in place.
The answer depends on too many factors to list here. We offer flexible payment options so you can get your estate plan in place.
A will is a document that transfers your property after you pass. A will is a legal document that requires care and expertise to draft properly. Wills are not effective until they are probated.
A trust is a document that lays out how your property will be managed and distributed. In simplest terms, trusts are used to avoid probate, keep your estate private, and get your legacy to your family quickly and inexpensively.
There are lots of reasons to choose either a will or a trust. Simply put, a will is easier for you, but a trust is easier for your family.
It’s true that probate is easier in Texas than some other states. However, probate is a formal legal proceeding that requires delay, heartache, and legal fees. Probates are also very public – everything you own and every debt you owe will become public record.
A living will (sometimes called a directive to physicians) is for end-of-life decisions. A living will does not work the same as a living trust or “last will” and confusing any of them could be catastrophic.
No. Texas law provides a default process to distribute your property to your heirs. However, a will can make that process much easier for your loved ones and a trust can avoid the process altogether.
The short answer is, “it’s complicated.” Texas law requires that your property be distributed to your “heirs at law”, which could result in odd fractional interests and property going to people you never intended to inherit.
With a will, your business won’t have anybody to manage business affairs until well into the probate process (which could take months or years). If you have a trust, your business can be managed the moment you pass away or lose capacity.
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