PROBATE AND TRUST PLANNING BASICS IN 2014!
HELLO FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES:
So it has been awhile due to many recent office changes since we have addressed basic trust and estate issues so, in my infinite wisdom, I decided that a few refresher courses and update sessions are in order so expect that in the coming weeks. Before we get started, I want to announce that in the coming weeks we will also be rolling out a series of videos, hosted by yours truly, designed to bring clarity to a number of common legal concerns experienced by you, my valued clients and friends...so stay tuned for website and social media updates. A weekly podcast is also in the development process.
Anyhoo, I always introduce the concept of probate in the United States by time traveling back to small town America. In the old days, a family member would pass away and the other family members would go to the butcher, who was also the probate judge, and he would tell them to sell dad’s plow and pay the livery stable, sell the tools and pay the general store, and so on and so and so forth. Today, the butcher is no longer the probate judge. Judges are often overworked and booked…and the creditors are not the livery stable and general store…they are often national corporations, or international. This all leads to probate having becoming an extremely complicated and burdensome process. You can expect that even the simplest probate cases will take at least 6 months to complete and complex cases can take several years or more. The legal fees generated in probate can extend easily into the 10s of 1000s and upward…ranging between 3 and 10% of the total value of the estate. The answer to the entanglements of probate is the revocable living trust. When you title your property in the name of a revocable trust instead of keeping it in your personal name, you may avoid the probate process if everything is done correctly…to assure things are done correctly requires the assistance of an experienced estate planning attorney who has handled 100’s of probate and trust matters and has this perspective of the process. When a trust is properly in place and assets are properly titled in the trust, then a private trust administration may take the place of the public probate administration and the difference in my experience is night and day. A trust administration involves your hand picked trustee notifying all beneficiaries, conducting an accounting and privately distributing assets to the beneficiaries in accordance with the specific terms of the trust. The trustee may be assisted by professionals and this is a totally private process that may be completed in days or weeks rather than months at a fraction of the cost of probate. In addition, creditor issues or disputes that can occur in probates may be entirely avoided by using a revocable living trust. Having dealt often with the hurdles in probate, I have seen first hand the benefits of effective, professionally assisted trust planning. Remember that canned trust documents don’t get it done because addressing the specific estate concerns and titling the assets is half the battle…the form pushers don’t want you to know this… The good news is that you can start customizing your revocable trust planning today and protect your family from the burdens of probate.
Additionally, trusts afford protection for you and your beneficiaries on a number of other fronts which may include estate tax protection, disability planning, divorce protection, and creditor protection. These are all advanced planning concerns that should be addressed by a professional when considering a revocable trust for your family.
I hope this first session helps provide perspective because this is my passion and the passion of my new and improved estate planning team...to provide you and your family with the tools needed to navigate the most difficult seasons in life. Stay tuned for more in the weeks to come.
Never hesitate to contact our office with questions.
Until next time friends.
