Estate planning is best undertaken with the assistance of an experienced professional because there are many different ways to transfer assets to your loved ones. You are not restricted to a last will, and the optimal combination of estate planning documents will vary on a case-by-case basis.
Aside from the goal of preventing asset erosion, another thing to consider is the personal proclivities of the people who will be receiving inheritances. You may have mature and established family members who will be able to handle any money that they may receive responsibly.
But not everyone is a great money manager. There are those who spend irresponsibly, and, if you have someone who fits this description on your inheritance list, you may be concerned about how this individual will react to a significant influx of financial resources.
If you are in this position, one course of action is to create a spendthrift trust.
With these trusts, you make your heir the beneficiary and you appoint a different trustee. The beneficiary can receive distributions from the trust in accordance with your wishes, but he or she will have no access to the principal. And the assets in the trust are protected from creditors.
The trustee will manage the resources, and many people will choose a professional entity such as the trust department of a bank or a trust company to act as the trustee.
Spendthrift trusts can provide a solution to a delicate situation. To learn more about them, simply take a moment to pick up the phone to arrange for a consultation with an Ashland KY estate planning lawyer.
John’s practice focuses on the use of Wills and Living Trusts in Estate Planning to help individuals protect their families and preserve their legacies after their deaths, but his practice also focuses on the critical issues of protecting individuals with dementia or other diminished capacity, assisting individuals in qualifying for Medicaid and other government benefits to offset the costs of long-term care, and providing special needs planning.
John is admitted to practice law in North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Ohio, and he is accredited by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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