Portal Information

Your legal documents are accessible via a secure ShareFile portal wherever and whenever you need.

A cloud-based “Portal” using ShareFile provides clients with a secure platform to upload documents. Once signed, it will also contain copies of all your key estate planning documents so that you, your loved ones, and other advisers can access them. A smartphone App makes documents accessible for you anywhere and anytime (e.g., a health care proxy for a health emergency). Compiling every document with a table of contents for complex estate plans will keep you and your advisor team coordinated.

Using the Portal

Emergency

Few people travel with their health care proxy or HIPAA release. In an emergency, you can download them (and all your documents) to your smartphone for your medical provider via the ShareFile App.

Your Planning Team

Coordinate planning with your estate and financial planning advisors (CPA, wealth adviser, etc.) by providing them access to all your key documents. For complex plans, a compilation of all documents (closing binder) and a table of contents will ease plan administration.

Agents

Assure agents and fiduciaries quick access to your estate documents so they can respond to emergencies.

Portal FAQ

Yes, click here for a simple step-by-step roadmap with screenshots to make it really easy (and you can always call us, and we’ll walk you through it).

A secure portal (vault) will be created for you.
▪ You will receive an email requesting that you create a password. We will not have access to your password.
▪ The Portal can be accessed anytime through the link on the www.shenkmanlaw.com website or directly through the ShareFile website, shenkmanlaw.sharefile.com.
▪ Sign in to the vault using your email and password. 
▪ Click on your name.
▪ You will see two folder options: Document Vault and Transfer File.
▪ The Document Vault will contain PDFs of your signed estate planning documents. You cannot change it.
▪ You can securely upload statements and documents to the Transfer File folder. 
▪ You can use this to send us large or confidential documents. 
▪ You can give your other advisers permission to access these too.
▪ ShareFile has smartphone Apps that you can download and access your documents.

You should consider using ShareFile to send any confidential documents such as tax returns, brokerage statements, any document with a tax identification or Social Security Number, etc. You should not use unencrypted email to send confidential information. Also, you should not use a work email address when communicating with us or your other advisers as that may taint attorney-client privilege or expose that information to a partner, business creditor, etc. 

▪The documents will vary depending on your circumstances and the services you have requested from us.
▪ Every time you upload a document to your Transfer File, you must email us informing us that you have uploaded documents, what those documents are, and what you wish us to do with respect to those documents. If you upload a document without emailing us we may not take any action with respect to that document. 
▪ We will request documents from you in the letters and memorandum we send you.
▪ If we prepare a checklist for your plan, which we recommend, that checklist will identify missing documents that you should identify and upload. ▪ You might consider uploading various documents even if we are not to act upon or review them. For example, a letter of instruction to your fiduciaries, tax returns, brokerage statements, insurance policies, and other documents may be useful in an emergency for us, other advisers, and fiduciaries (e.g., your agent) to be able to access.
▪ We will not review or assume any responsibility for any document you upload unless you have requested in writing or email that we address that document and we have acknowledged in writing or email that we, in fact, are addressing or reviewing that document.
▪ If you have not received a return communication from us confirming what we will do, you should assume we will do nothing more than store the particular document.

While it appears that the technology for cloud-based data vaults such as that provided by ShareFile should be reliable and safe, there is always potential for risk. If the ShareFile website is compromised, there is the possibility someone could gain unauthorized access to these files. If you are not comfortable with this risk, please, let us know, and we can remove your documents and deactivate your account. 

▪ Certain original documents are important to keep safe, as the law may require the original to perform certain actions. For example, the original will is required to “probate” a will after someone has passed away. In fact, if the original cannot be found, the law may presume you intended to revoke that will.
▪ We recommend that you safeguard all of your original documents.
▪ In some circumstances, you may wish to retain originals of prior wills.
▪ You should keep these in a secure (locked), fireproof location, not a bank-safe deposit box (which may be sealed on death).
▪ We do not retain any original documents.
▪ Your fiduciaries (e.g., personal representatives) should be informed of where you have kept your original documents and how they can access them. 

▪ We will set up a sub-folder in your Document Vault for each trust or transaction for your plan.
▪ That folder will include a checklist of most steps and documents in that part of your plan.
▪ The numbers in that checklist will correspond to individual documents that will also be loaded into the folder organized and identified by that number. This will make it easy for you and any adviser you authorize to access key documents and help you administer the plan.
▪ For these types of plans, an annual (or more frequent) review and update meeting is essential.

Yes.
▪ If non-lawyers (family, accountants, wealth advisers, etc.)  access your documents or are otherwise made privy to your planning, that may undermine your availing yourself of the attorney-client privilege to prevent the IRS or creditors from gaining access to that information.
▪ You have to weigh the benefits of a collaborative team effort and administration of your plan versus the possible loss of attorney-client privilege. ▪ You can discuss with us the possible use of a Kovel arrangement.

▪ All original documents are returned to our clients.
▪ We do not retain any original documents or any paper files of any nature.
▪  You can download the electronic copies of the documents from the portal and retain them on your computer.
▪ Clients receive copies of emails, memorandum, and other matters and, as such, have the entire contents of their “client file” at all times. If you hire new counsel, you will have all your original documents, memorandum, files, and records to turn over to them.