Avoiding Probate with a Living Trust
by
Stewart Richard Albertson on Nov. 15, 2015
Estate Wills & Probate Estate Trusts Estate Estate Planning
Summary: Probate is the legal process through which the estate of a person who has passed away is administered.
Probate is the legal process through which the estate of a
person who has passed away is administered. The administration of an estate can
involve the transfer of assets, the payment of debts, settling past-due taxes, and
determining the validity of a will, among other things. While this may sound
simple, in many cases, the process of probate is costly and time-consuming –
but also completely avoidable, in many cases. For this reason, it is important
to talk to an attorney about how you may be able to pass your estate on to your
family members or other chosen beneficiaries without your estate having to go
through probate.
An attorney can help
establish a living trust
Many people are familiar with the idea of a “trust,” but are
unclear as to how one operates. A trust is simply a legal relationship in which
one party holds property “in trust” for the benefit of another. In a trust, the
parties involved are the grantor, or creator of the trust, the trustee, who is
the party that holds and manages the trust assets, and the beneficiaries, for
whose benefit, unsurprisingly, the assets are held
A living, or “inter vivos,” trust is simply a trust that is
created while a person is alive. The trustee may even be the grantor while he
or she is alive, but a successor trustee must be named to manage the trust when
a grantor-trustee passes away. In most living trusts, the trust document then
directs the trustee as to how to dispose of the trust assets. Importantly, assets that are passed from a
trust to a trustee do not need to go through probate, potentially saving your
family and other beneficiaries significant sums of money in attorney’s fees and
court costs.
Properly setting up a trust is a complicated issue that
requires significant legal expertise. For this reason, anyone considering
creating a trust in California should do so with the assistance of a probate lawyer in Los Angeles.
Contact a Los Angeles probate law firm today to discuss your case
Anyone that is planning to transfer assets to future
generations should discuss their circumstances with a Los Angeles wrongful death lawyer as soon as
possible. In many cases, an experienced lawyer can help your beneficiaries
avoid the time and expenses associated with probate completely. Call Albertson
& Davidson, LLP today to set up a consultation with an attorney.