If you want to protect certain assets from creditors or taxes, or if you want to simplify the probate process, it may be a good idea to create one or more trusts to put your property in prior to your death. Different types of trusts are appropriate for different circumstances and desires, so if you want to make the most of this legal option for your estate plan, you should seek counsel from a Woodstock trusts lawyer. Guidance from a qualified trusts and estates attorney could be crucial to ensuring your assets are handled the way you want them to be after you pass away.
A trust is a legal instrument that allows a testator—the person creating an estate plan—to manage certain assets separately from the rest of their estate. When setting up a trust, a testator must identify a trustee who will be responsible for managing the assets inside the trust if the testator becomes incapacitated or once the testator passes away, as well as distributing the contents of a trust to specific beneficiaries based on the testator’s instructions.
There are two main types of trusts a testator can make in the state of Georgia, which are primarily differentiated by whether the trust provides asset protection or not. As the names suggest, a revocable trust allows a testator to add or remove terms, assets, beneficiaries, and even trustee designations up until the moment of their death.
While irrevocable trusts can be used to shield certain assets from tax liability, the high cost of medical care as you age, or from liquidation by creditors looking to collect on a testator’s debts by going through the assets in their estate. Although it seems counter-intuitive, an irrevocable trust can be created with the ability to change it. A local trusts attorney could explain during a private consultation what circumstances may justify a particular type of trust over another and what short-term and long-term consequences a specific type of trust may have.
For most people, the probate process their family members and/or beneficiaries will have to go through following a loved one’s death can be pretty lengthy and complicated. Accordingly, one of the most common reasons Woodstock residents seek to set up trusts is to shorten probate as much as possible.
Once assets are put into a valid trust, they are considered exempt from probate in Georgia, meaning that the trustee can begin distributing trust assets much more quickly after a testator’s death without first having to wait for the probate process to be completed. However, other procedures may be necessary depending on the type of trust involved, all of which a well-practiced lawyer in Woodstock could go over in further detail as necessary.
Putting together a trust can often be a key part of a comprehensive estate plan, especially given Georgia’s strict probate requirements. However, if you want to ensure your trust accomplishes everything you want it to, you should strongly consider seeking help from an experienced legal professional.
A Woodstock trusts lawyer could help make sure your trust both complies with state law and effectively achieves your estate planning goals. Call today to learn more about the assistance legal counsel could provide.
