Trusts & Wills

A Will, or Testament, is a written document that hopefully is enforceable dictating how an individual wishes to dispose of his or her personal property, and sometimes his or her real property, at the time of his or her death. A Will does several important things. In a Will, the Maker, or Testator, selects an individual or entity to administer the probate assets (which may or may not include the real property of the Testator depending upon how he or she owns the property) when he or she dies, called the Personal Representative or Executor.

This is the individual or entity that the Probate Court will hold personally responsible should anything go wrong. For this reason the Court may want a bond filed to insure his or her actions. If there are minor children left behind a Will normally serves to nominate the Guardians of the children, though the Court will have the last word in appointing the Guardians.

Normally, a Will also indicates which individuals and/or entities will receive which assets. During your lifetime, a Will can be “revoked,” meaning you can modify or eliminate it at any time. It should be noted that a Will does nothing for you if you become sick or disabled, as it only “springs to life” upon the death of the Testator.

However, whether you die Intestate or with a Will, any assets in your name at the time of your death will have to go through the expensive, time-consuming and public process of probate. Probate is effectively a lawsuit that you take out against yourself, which you pay for, for the benefit of your creditors. The last people to benefit, if that is the proper word, from the probate process are your loved ones and your charities.

There is a way to avoid this court ordered distribution of your assets, namely by creating a Revocable, or Living Trust.

Generally, a Trust, by definition, is an enforceable contract designed to hold assets that are eligible to be held in a trust that are administered by individuals or entities for the benefit of another. Trusts are often set up for probate avoidance, basic estate tax planning or asset protection.

There are various forms of Trusts, a few of which are:

To discuss a estate planning matter confidentially or for information, please contact Danny Wexler, Attorney at Law @ (714) 241.1919 or email d.wexler@qwllp.com.