In the course of creating an estate plan, it can be helpful to place some or all of your assets into a trust in order to exempt those assets from the probate process and streamline their distribution to beneficiaries upon your death. In order to ensure your trust works the way you intend it to, you will need to make sure you have someone dependable to help administer the trust—both while you are still alive and after your eventual passing.
A Manhattan trust administration lawyer could provide essential assistance with setting up a trust, funding it with property of your choice, and designating beneficiaries and trustees. If necessary, a qualified attorney in the area could even help with the process of distributing trust assets following your passing.
There are several steps a person must take while constructing and funding a trust, all of which must be followed for the eventual administration of that trust to proceed smoothly. The first and most essential stage in this process is deciding what kind of trust is most appropriate for the types of assets the individual wishes to protect and the parties whom they wish to name as beneficiaries.
Broadly speaking, there are two main categories that trusts fall into. A “living trust,” as the term implies, is made while the individual is still alive, which means the property included in the trust, the parties named as beneficiaries, and even the existence of the trust in the first place can all be changed at any point prior to the creator’s death. Accordingly, this type of trust is also known as a “revocable trust.”
On the other hand, an “irrevocable trust” is created upon the person’s death based on instructions in their will, meaning they cannot change the terms of the trust at all once they establish it. This kind of trust does allow for reduced tax obligations and certain other benefits, but it also requires the creator to effectively give away trust assets to the trust itself, making them no longer the lawful owner of that property. A trust administration attorney in the Manhattan area could help structure and execute upon either type of trust.
During the process of creating a trust, it can be crucial to have a legal professional on hand to answer questions about the best course of action, highlight potential advantages and disadvantages of different types of trusts, and ensure that no legal roadblocks will get in the way of the eventual administration of the trust. This assistance can entail anything from preparing inventories of relevant assets and debts to getting trust assets appraised, to even handling the payment of fees and debts on a trust’s behalf.
Once it is time to distribute trust assets, assistance from a trust administration lawyer in Manhattan can be even more important. In addition to preparing documentation for the transfer of real property and ensuring it ends up in the right places, seasoned legal counsel could also take the lead on allocating financial assets to beneficiaries or into subtrusts as applicable.
Forming a trust can be a complicated endeavor, as can the process of actually administering that trust. Fortunately, professional help is available through every stage of the trust administration process from experienced legal representatives who have helped individuals like you before.
A conversation with a Manhattan trust administration lawyer should be a priority if you intend to include any kind of trust in your estate plan. Call today to set up a meeting.
