Module 5 — Legal & Legacy Readiness
Clients who say their documents are done are usually telling the truth, and often still unprotected. The agent named years ago has since died, no successor was appointed, assets pass through the wrong document, or nobody can find the originals on the day a decision cannot wait. What follows is often a legal process that costs a family months and several thousand dollars.
This module shows advisors how to spot those failures while there is still time to fix them. It covers the life events that should trigger a document review, the practical failure modes that only surface under pressure, and how digital assets and account access now complicate estate administration. It is also clear about
scope: what an advisor can appropriately do, including collecting documents, understanding what they say, and flagging concerns, and where the attorney takes over. An elder law and estate technology expert walks through what breaks most often in practice, and why.
At the end of this module, the financial advisor will be able to:
- Identify the life events that should prompt a review of estate documents
- Explain why a document that exists can still fail when a family needs it
- Describe how digital assets and account access affect estate administration
- Articulate what an advisor can appropriately do without giving legal advice
Kelly Baird
Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer
bQuest
Kelly Baird is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of bQuest, a care intelligence and coordination platform connecting financial advisors and their clients with trusted professionals throughout the aging, caregiving, end-of-life, and loss journeys. With nearly two decades of experience leading partnerships and initiatives across public health, economic development, early childhood systems, and community development, Kelly brings a systems-level perspective and a deep commitment to building collaborative solutions that create lasting impact.
Kelly’s passion for transforming aging care is rooted in personal experience. As an adult daughter, caregiver, and crisis navigator for her parents and 99-year-old grandmother, she experienced firsthand the emotional and logistical challenges families face when navigating care without a clear guide. At bQuest, Kelly leads the development of a national ecosystem of vetted professionals, working to ensure families have access to compassionate, trusted support when they need it most.
David Haughton, J.D., CPWA®
Vice President of Engagement
Hargrove
David Haughton, J.D., CPWA® is Vice President of Engagement at Hargrove, where he helps financial advisors and wealth management firms make estate planning a more accessible and actionable part of the client relationship. His career spans private-practice estate planning law, advanced financial planning, wealth management, and estate planning technology. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Estate Planning at Carson Group, following roles as Senior Corporate Counsel at Wealth.com and Team Lead of Advanced Planning at Commonwealth Financial Network.
David is also a frequent writer, speaker, and educator on estate planning, regularly contributing to industry publications and participating in podcasts and webinars. He is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts and New Hampshire and holds the Certified Private Wealth Advisor® designation. His work focuses on helping advisors integrate estate planning into comprehensive financial advice and making the process more practical for the families they serve.
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