Trusts and probate law is a very important area of everyone’s life, yet the average person knows very little about them, and much less about estate planning. Everyone at some point will pass away. As a result, planning for how one’s property and interests will be distributed after death is simply a smart approach to helping take care of loved ones and settling issues that could otherwise turn into ugly disputes between relatives.
Work With a Professional to Prepare Trusts and Estate Plans Proactively
Every estate that is left behind has to go through probate court to officially transfer title of the estate property to new beneficiaries. Normally, this is determined through a will from the deceased. However, where there is no clear plan, the court will make the decisions on who gets what. This can be very different than what was originally desired or wanted by the deceased.
General estate planning is available to all parties and trusts offer even more protection, but people need to take the time to understand how these legal elements work. Estate planning in general will focus on crafting plans, including wills and last testaments, so that a person’s last wishes will go through the probate hearing with as little challenge as possible. A trust, on the other hand, involves the creation of a separate legal entity that immediately transfers property title out of the owner and to the entity. Upon a triggering event, usually the death of the trust holder, the property immediately transfers to the beneficiaries named. As a result, there is no case to review in probate. And the courts rarely open up trusts because they are considered private agreements where the party knew what it was doing crafting the document. So the details remain private, and the beneficiaries intended receive the assets distributed.
For those looking for or seeking a qualified Allen trust & probate law attorney, Attorney Aaron C. Lee should be strongly considered. His years of experience and practice allow Aaron Lee to navigate the probate court with ease, both procedurally and on substantive hearings regarding estates and settlement of claims. The critical factor about estate planning and trusts involves preparing the paperwork right ahead of time so they work correctly when a person does pass away. After all, there’s no room for fixing anything after the fact. And more often than not, the court will do something very different than what a person wants for his estate.