Law Office of DeVonna Ponthieu

04/15/2026

Why You Should Have A Will

There are many good reasons for having a Last Will and Testament. Unfortunately, some people skip the will-making process because it calls for making decisions. They never experience the peace of mind that comes from knowing and directing who will receive their estates.

When you die without a will, Louisiana, like most states, provides a statutory distribution scheme of how your property is to be distributed. Even if you are happy with the way the state will distribute your property, there are other reasons for having a will.

1. If you have children the Louisiana laws generally provide that your property will pass to your children if you do not have a will. Generally, you need a will if you want to pass property to your spouse or to others besides your children.

2. If you have young children you may want to consider the use of a testamentary trust in a will that says property left to the children can be managed for the children’s benefit until they reach a certain age.

3. The Internal Revenue Code exempts a certain amount of your property from federal estate taxes. If your estate exceeds the exempted amount, then consider a will to at least defer federal estate taxes through the use of the unlimited marital deduction if you are married.

4. A will can be used to appoint an executor who will be responsible for gathering the assets of your estate, paying debts, paying taxes and otherwise distributing the assets of the estate to your successors.

5. A will can be used for the appointment of a guardian for your minor children.

6. A will can be utilized to make charitable bequests to perpetuate the gift-giving you have done during your lifetime.

7. A will can be utilized to equalize gifts to children. During your lifetime, some children may have received more gifts than other.

8. A will can be used to disinherit a child.

9. A will can be utilized to provide bequests to grandchildren, taking advantage of the generation skipping transfer tax exemption.

10. A will can be utilized to provide for contingencies that allow for estate planning after your death.

The time invested in developing a will can make a real difference to your family and the organizations you can about. Don’t wait. If you don’t have a will, begin planning for one. If you have a will, make sure it reflects your current wishes.

03/30/2026

Our office will be closed on Friday, April 3 for Good Friday and will re-open on Monday, April 6. We hope each and every one of you has a safe and happy Easter weekend.

01/21/2026

Don't forget to keep voting every day for my law office under Criminal Defense, Family Law and Woman Owned Business.

Vote once per day from January 5 through January 23.

01/12/2026

Dont forget to vote every day.

This office was nominated for Best of Baton Rouge! 🤩
Thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate us — being alongside so many great businesses is truly an honor!

Voting goes until January 23rd.
You can vote once day until the ballots close!

Please vote in Family Law, Criminal Law and in Woman owned business.

You can vote here:

Vote once per day from January 5 through January 23.

01/06/2026

This office was nominated for Best of Baton Rouge! 🤩
Thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate us — being alongside so many great businesses is truly an honor!

Voting opens today at 12:00PM and goes until January 23rd.
You can vote once day until the ballots close!

Please vote in Family Law, Criminal Law and in Woman owned business.

You can vote here:

01/01/2026

Our office would like to wish each and every one of you avery happy new year. May it be joyous, prosperous and wealthy.

12/22/2025

So many times a married couple splits up and divide what is in the bank accounts, then waits the 6 month or one year to file (depending on whether they have children under age of 18). Please understand that while you are waiting the community property is still going on. You must file a petition for divorce to stop the community property. So for instance you divide money when separate, file petition 6 months later then when you partition the community property you have to divide the bank accounts again. This does not work out well for the person who kept the account. File the petition, close out the account and open a new account. Please call me and set up a consultation to further explain divorce, custody, child support, spousal support and community property

06/14/2025

People ask if they can do their wills from a site online. Do not use an online template or any template that you would pay for. Those templates are generic and meant to be broad so that anyone from any state can use them. However, Louisiana law surrounding estates/wills is more complex than the the average state that these templates are based off of. These wills are often found to be invalid. If you want to make sure your wishes are carried out, please see an attorney. You can give our office a call and we will be glad to discuss your will with you.

04/17/2025

Our office will be closed on Good Friday. We wish you all a safe and very happy Easter.

03/29/2025

03/19/2025

Remember, our goal in family law cases is to work out all the details with the other party outside of court. Ironing out all the details prior to seeing the judge can make for faster and smoother proceedings.