Revocable Living Trusts

• If you die before your spouse.  There is the possibility that your spouse will remarry. Most Estate Plans provide for a surviving spouse and then for children.  However, most Estate Plans do not prevent the surviving spouse from changing the plan to favor the new spouse and new children.
• Every estate planning attorney has stories of a surviving spouse disinheriting the original heirs.  A properly designed Trust based Estate Plan created by Idaho Law Group will contain appropriate safeguards to ensure the original plan is honored.

• A Trust designed by Idaho Law Group avoids Probate. Property that is passed through a Will must be directed by Court order through the state’s Probate process: proving the validity of the Will, appointing a Personal Representative, and implementing the Will’s directives. Probate can be protracted and expensive.
• Probate requires mandatory notification to all beneficiaries of the Will and to those who would inherit if there were no Will. This process allows those not named in a Will the opportunity to challenge the validity of the Will. A Trust designed by Idaho Law Group avoids the mandatory probate notification process and can reduce unnecessary conflict.
• If you own real estate in more than one state, your estate must probate property in each and every state where property is owned. However, you can avoid multiple state probates if all your properties are placed into a Trust designed by Idaho Law Group.
• A Trust does not require court intervention. Your Trust is handled entirely by the Trustee you name. Your Trust is your detailed set of instructions regarding how your estate is to be administered.
• A Trust keeps your estate affairs private because it is not probated. When a Will is probated, all information filed with the Court is public record including the inventory of all assets and their values.
• A Trust allows for efficient distribution of your assets. According to the American Bar Association, the average Probate takes 6-9 months.  However, if difficulties arise, some Probates last years.

• A Trust based Estate Plan created by Idaho Law Group has the capability to protect assets for your children and their descendants for multiple generations.
• Each Trust can be structured to leave assets to beneficiaries in a protected trust with as many or as few restrictions as you deem appropriate
• Each Trust can be structured to leave assets to one generation, multiple generations, or in separate trusts for each succeeding generation’s beneficiaries.

If you are turning 65 today, you have nearly a 70% chance of needing some type of Long Term Care services and supports in your remaining years. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) If you are no longer able to manage your own finances, it is essential to have disability provisions drafted into your Trust.
Idaho Law Group may draft your Trust to:

• Provide for aging parents
• Instruct your Trustee how to care for you and how to care for your family.
• Instruct your Trustee how to manage your assets.
• Plan for proper management of your business.
• Avoid the need for Court imposed conservatorship

Your beneficiaries may experience disabling injury or illness after you have created your Estate Plan. Idaho Law Group builds a disability sub-trust into each Trust based estate plan. Idaho Law Group will also design stand-alone “Special Needs” Trusts when appropriate.

The medical and financial needs of a disabled beneficiary often necessitate use of government programs for assistance. Use of disability planning in your Trust will allow your disabled beneficiary to:

• Qualify for Medicaid and other assistance quickly
• Preserve the beneficiary’s inheritance
• Supplement the needs of your beneficiary without loss of government benefits
• Avoid the need for Court imposed conservatorship

Your beneficiaries may be too young to manage financial assets.  Even if you leave assets to a mature beneficiary, he or she may predecease you and those assets pass to a child too young to manage them.  You should determine the age that is appropriate for a beneficiary to manage their inherited assets. Idaho Law Group drafts provisions to address these issues.

When an adult beneficiary suffers from addictions, immaturity, or devastating life events, this beneficiary’s inheritance may be in jeopardy.  Idaho Law Group designs Trusts that allow your Trustee to maintain, preserve, and manage the inheritance so that it will be protected for the beneficiary and from the beneficiary.

Protecting assets for yourself requires specialty Asset Protection Planning. [link to Asset Protection page] However, protecting assets for your beneficiaries may be provided for in your Trust based Estate Plan.

Many Estate Plans leave inheritances exposed. If a beneficiary gets sued or gets divorced, the inheritance you intended for a child may instead go to a creditor or an ex-spouse. Idaho Law Group drafts plans that protect each of your beneficiaries from creditors, predators, and divorce.

Many of our clients have the desire to name a charity as a beneficiary. Idaho Law Group has the experience to assist you in fulfilling your charitable goals within your Estate Plan.

Trust based estate planning provides the most flexible options to reduce or eliminate estate tax and generation skipping transfer tax. Idaho law group will counsel with you to choose the appropriate provisions for your circumstances.