Digital Estate Planning: Managing Online Assets

What Is Digital Estate Planning?

Digital estate planning is a relatively new concept within the field of estate planning. It addresses the management and control of an individual’s digital assets after they pass away. 

Digital assets encompass a wide range of items, such as downloaded music in your Spotify account, email accounts, cryptocurrency holdings, and anything else that exists primarily in a digital form.

Since the internet and digital tools such as websites and applications have become integral to conducting business and socializing, the question of who owns digital assets after someone dies has become far more important. 

To address this issue, the Uniform Code Committee developed the Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which provides guidelines for managing digital assets within estate planning. Although not every state has adopted this act, it offers direction on how to handle digital assets in estate planning documents and what to do if no provisions have been made.

The act strives to clarify who has the right to access digital accounts, open emails and texts, and manage digital currencies and other online assets, ensuring that digital possessions are appropriately managed and transferred according to the deceased person’s wishes.

What Are The Legal Considerations For Digital Estate Planning In Colorado?

One of the most significant considerations in digital estate planning in Colorado is ensuring that your will specifies who will make decisions regarding your digital assets. Designating a personal representative who will handle these assets with the sensitivity and discretion required can be incredibly important in certain situations, especially.

For example, suppose you kept a digital journal that contained potentially hurtful statements about family members. Empowering a personal representative to decide whether or not to release such a journal means you can allow for a sensitive approach that can protect your loved ones from unnecessary exposure and pain. In contrast, digital assets with tangible value, such as cryptocurrency, need to be explicitly included in the estate.

When planning your estate, think carefully about who you want to review and make decisions about your digital assets. Naming a trusted person in your will to handle these responsibilities ensures that your digital estate is managed in accordance with your wishes and with the necessary care.

Attorney Tammy Akers of the Law Firm of Tammy W. Akers, LLC in Colorado is a recognized authority in estate planning, with a particular focus on the emerging field of digital estate planning. With years of experience guiding clients through managing digital assets, Tammy has successfully helped many ensure their digital legacies are protected and their wishes are honored. Her knowledge of both traditional and digital estate planning makes her uniquely qualified to provide comprehensive, tailored solutions for her clients' needs.

Contact Tammy W. Akers, LLC, to secure your digital and traditional estate today.

What Types Of Digital Assets Should Be Included In Your Estate Plan?

It’s smart to include all digital assets in your estate plan. The types of digital assets you hold today may differ significantly from those you possess at the time of your passing. Doing so ensures comprehensive coverage and control.

Including all digital assets means that everything, from your social media accounts and email to cryptocurrency and digital journals, is addressed. This approach allows your personal representative to manage and distribute these assets according to your wishes without leaving any gaps or ambiguities. This way, all aspects of your digital life are brought under the control of one person you trust, ensuring that your estate is handled in alignment with your intentions.

What Are Some Challenges Of Managing Digital Assets In Estate Planning?

The primary challenge of managing digital assets in estate planning lies in determining their intrinsic and emotional value. Assets with clear financial worth, such as cryptocurrency or valuable digital collections, are straightforward and should be included in an estate plan. However, personal digital content, such as emails, social media posts, and digital journals, presents more complex challenges.

These personal digital assets, comparable to private physical papers, can carry significant emotional weight. If not handled with sensitivity, they have the potential to cause emotional harm to loved ones. Deciding how to manage these assets involves carefully considering their impact on surviving family members and friends, ensuring that their disclosure or preservation aligns with the deceased’s wishes while minimizing potential distress.

How Can An Estate Planning Attorney Help You Integrate Digital Estate Planning With Traditional Estate Planning?

An estate planning attorney can help you integrate digital estate planning with traditional estate planning. One of the key ways they can is by including specific provisions in your will regarding digital assets. For example, if you want to make all digital assets available to your family except for certain sensitive items like personal journals and text messages, the attorney can ensure these preferences are clearly outlined in the estate plan.

Additionally, an attorney can provide you with much needed guidance on how to securely store and manage digital assets, ensuring they are easily accessible to the designated personal representative while remaining protected from unauthorized access. This is very important to many people who hold digital assets, and understandably so.

Still Have Questions? Ready To Get Started?

For more information on Digital Estate Planning, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (719) 985-8192 today.