Will A Trust Or Trusts Help You Accomplish Your Estate Planning Goals?
An effective, complete estate plan typically has several components, including a will, powers of attorney, a health care directive and in many cases, one or more trusts. Like a will, a trust enables someone to legally pass on assets to designated beneficiaries.
Unlike a will, a trust does not go through the Orphans’ Court (Maryland’s term for courts that handle probate). Many people choose to establish trusts for this reason alone. Others with substantial resources hope to help their beneficiaries avoid inheritance taxes.
Some people turn to Griffin Selby Law PLLC for help choosing trusts that may provide for a seamless transition of assets to selected beneficiaries for specific uses. They might hope to benefit their sons and daughters with structured timelines for the release of funds or to enhance the lives of disabled family members without jeopardizing their continued eligibility for government assistance.
Which Type Of Trust(s) Will Meet Your Needs?
Trusts often involve many technical details that people find hard to understand if not familiar with them. I am estate planning attorney Karen M. Selby, and I enjoy helping clients select and design trusts that will provide them and their designated beneficiaries reassurance and peace of mind. Common types of trusts include:
- Irrevocable living trusts, which relieve the grantor of some consequences of ownership of assets (such as taxation or liability) during their lifetimes
- Revocable living trusts, which allow grantors to manage their assets throughout their lives before those assets pass on to named beneficiaries
- Special needs trusts for disabled children or other family members with disabilities
- Generation-skipping trusts, often used by grandparents to fund their grandchildren’s college educations and provide resources for other purposes
- Charitable remainder trusts that provide income to beneficiaries for the rest of their lives, with the remaining assets going to one or more chosen charities afterward
In a free initial consultation, I can hear about your goals and translate those goals into estate planning recommendations.
Interested In Setting Up A Trust? Let’s Talk.
If you choose to work with me as your estate planning attorney, I can help you create or update your will and establish and manage any trusts that you decide to create. If applicable, I will help ensure that you title your assets to the trusts to prevent any unintended consequences.
To reach my Waldorf law offices of Griffin Selby Law PLLC, call 202-844-5753 or use my online inquiry form.
