The purpose of estate planning is to prepare the transfer of your assets to others upon your death. Without a comprehensive estate plan, a significant part of your retirement assets accumulated over the years through work and investments can be lost or given to unintended beneficiaries – or taxed away by the government in the form of heavy estate taxes and probate costs.In this section you'll learn about wills and probate, trusts, charities, beneficiary designations and estate taxes as you design your personal estate plan.