Asset protection is an important aspect of White City Utah Estate Planning and is a delicate process for White City Utah residents. In some states such as Nevada and Alaska, they allow what is known as a Domestic Asset Protection Trust that protects the trust against creditors. There are approximately 13 other states that allow a Domestic Asset Protection Trust. White City Utah is not one of them. In fact, public policy in White City Utah cringes at the thought of Domestic Asset Protection Trust instruments being created to avoid paying creditors or estate taxes. A White City Utah Estate Planning Attorney may prepare a Spendthrift Trust for asset protection but must ensure the instrument is not prepared as a self-settled trust otherwise the trust is not protected from creditors.
What differentiates a Domestic Asset Protection Trust from a Spendthrift Trust in White City Utah? In order to answer that question you will need to understand what sets the two instruments apart. First, think of the trust as being similar to an offshore account. This particular trust may be useful for individuals in high-risk industries or people trying to avoid taxes on their estate. In other words, the trust is created by the Settlor for the benefit of the Settlor during his or her lifetime. If you are thinking you can create a Domestic Asset Protection Trust as a White City Utah resident, think again. In order for any possibility for this type of trust to be relevant most, if not all, activity must be in the state that allows the instrument such as Nevada or Alaska. Even though the activity may be in the allowable state, it could still lead to disaster down the road. In this case, a Washington resident who had no connections to Alaska had an estate planning attorney prepare an Alaska Domestic Asset Protection Trust that failed miserably.
Before Hiring Estate Planning Lawyers: 4 Questions To Ask
If you’ve thought of drafting a will, you likely have a lot of questions. Most people want to know if this is something they can do themselves, and while that answer is sometimes yes, it’s usually better to use the expertise of estate planning attorneys. How can someone just starting the process know which firm to hire, however? Before deciding which attorney to use, ask these questions.
How Long Has The Firm Been Working As Estate Attorneys?
When crafting a will and other documents, it’s a good idea to have a firm that’s experienced. Experienced estate planning lawyers will know which documents are required and can recommend others for your specific circumstances. Look for a firm with more than 10 years of experience and, if possible, look for attorneys who have been designated White City Utah Lawyers.’ These lawyers have received special recognition from their peers and have a reputation for being the best of the best. Also ask how much business is brought in by estate attorneys. A firm made up mostly of estate planning lawyers will be a better choice than one that focuses primarily on other aspects of the law. It’s okay if the firm handles other types of cases, just check to make sure they have the necessary experience to help you with your documents.
How Much Does It Cost?
Some firms have a set price, while others charge by the hour. Before signing a contract, get written notice of the fees. Make sure it matches what you’ve been told so you don’t face surprises later on. If you’re only given an estimate, find out what happens if the total cost exceeds the estimate. Will you be notified ahead of time, or just billed unexpectedly? The cost can vary based on a number of factors, including how difficult the plan is, the experience of the lawyer and your geographical location.
Who Should Receive The Inheritance?
Most people have a good idea of whom they want to leave their inheritance to after they pass. If you have children and grandchildren, estate attorneys can help you determine how it’s best to divide your assets. They can make sure you’re aware of any situations that could cause your heirs to pay a greater percentage of tax, such as the generation skipping tax.
What Happens If The Will Is Contested?
This is one case in which using a lawyer works to your family’s advantage. After you pass, it’s possible for friends, relatives and business partners to contest your last wishes. If you’ve had your documents created by attorneys, the chances that your wishes aren’t carried out will be greatly diminished. If the will is still contested, your attorney can help your family member defend it in court or through negotiation. Estate planning attorneys can be a vital resource when it comes time to determine your last requests. Although these are great questions to ask, they’re only a starting point. Make sure you’re comfortable with your lawyer and don’t forget to update your documents if you ever have a situation change that warrants an update.
Hiring a Solicitor for Estate Planning
White City Utah. Planning law covers a wide area of law, such as town planning, village planning and real estate planning. Usually a property owner will need estate planning for any property that they had bought. They will need the advice of a solicitor to perform estate planning.
The property law of the country where the property resides governs the property succession after the owner’s death. Thus, the owner has to write a will with the help and advice of a solicitor. Some countries will apply their own law during the process of property succession while some countries will allow the property to be transacted as per the law of the owner’s country. The latter will be allowed (in the case of a foreign-born owner) only if the owner prepares a foreign will according to local White City Utah. Law. Thus it is very important that the property owner doesn’t simply follow a do-it-yourself approach. They should seek the help of lawyers in White City Utah who have a considerable amount of experience in handling estate planning cases.
There are solicitor-client matching services online which the client can use to get in touch with the lawyers available in their immediate neighborhood. Finding an appropriate solicitor is getting easier with the availability of many online service providers who links the clients with established lawyers. One simply needs to go to the Internet and search for “Solicitors in White City Utah” and one will get hundreds of links to competent lawyers. The other thing that the user should do is to check the credentials of the solicitor by getting references. Hopefully the solicitor will be known to the client, but it’s also useful to read reviews regarding the services provided by the solicitor in local regional websites. Some lawyers also provide no obligation services. Thus, hiring a solicitor for estate planning involves planning in itself and one should try to consider all these factors before hiring a solicitor. However, in the end they will afford you piece of mind that your estate is in order, so upon your death your property will be handled in the exact way that you have set out with your professional estate planning solicitor.
Estate Plans and Powers-Of-Attorney For Special Needs Clients
Estate planning, trusts, wills and living wills are confusing and convoluted. Estate plans cover several of these items, but trusts can be a different matter. With state and federal laws regarding inheritance and property changing every year and contributing to the confusion, an individual or family should not rely on a do-it-yourself approach. What poses a more challenging and problematic situation is if there is an individual with physical disabilities or developmental special needs. Because the laws change constantly, the services of an experienced attorney need to be used. When an individual dies without a will, also known as intestate, the assets are left for the courts to decide the best method to distribute them. The process of probate is usually never swift and even the simplest estate can often be diminished to the extent where the remaining assets are almost nonexistent. Conversely, should the entire estate be left solely to the spouse, the taxable estate of the spouse may very well increase. In the event that the spouse also passes away, the children will be left with higher taxes as well. Estate tax exemptions are available, but may not be taken advantage of without taking the proper steps.
Assigning a power of attorney is also an important component of estate planning. Not to be confused with a living will, should an individual be ill or unable to be present to make decisions about personal property and finances, a power of attorney authorizes a second party to legally make decisions in their stead. A living will does not pertain to the individual’s property, but the medical care provided. In the event that a person becomes too ill, incapacitated or otherwise incapable of making their own decisions regarding their personal medical care, a living will prepared ahead of time will spell out the medical care desired or forbidden. An example of this would be to forbid using artificial life support when permanent brain damage has caused the brain to cease any activity.
A complete estate plan will include much of the above, but when there is a special needs or physically disabled individual, additional detailed and complex provisions need to be arranged. Without additional planning, it is almost a certainty that the disabled or special needs family member will end up in a state institution receiving only the mediocre care that lack of money can provide. Trusts are not always part of an estate plan, but are an integral part of ensuring that the special needs individual will receive the appropriate medical care after the parents have passed. Without planning for the inevitable would just be criminal for which there is no punishment.
The Estate Planning Documents That Everyone Should Have
People hear the word “estate” and think that end of life financial planning is just for the extremely wealthy. They could not be more wrong. The extremely wealthy have the knowledge to surround themselves with attorneys and accountants that shield them from the perils of an improperly planned estate. The people most harmed by the probate process and the estate tax are the middle-class of this country.
I am married and I have a daughter who is almost two years old. I like in a house that used to have equity in it but it is mostly mortgage today. I lease my car, own a small business, and pay student loans for my wife and myself. We are a two-income household with a little bit of money in the bank but neither of us will be able to retire any time soon. If this scenario sounds similar to yours, you probably need a similar estate plan to the one I currently have in place. My estate plan includes the following:
Two Revocable Living Trusts – You and your spouse will both be co-trustees of each other’s trust. You will have the same access to your assets as you do right now. When the first spouse passes away, the maximum allowable tax-free distribution for the year of death will fund a newly created Bypass Trust. The remainder of the assets in the deceased spouse’s trust will fund a newly created Marital Trust. The surviving spouse will have access to all of the assets in the spouse’s own Living Trust, as well as the newly formed Bypass and Marital Trusts. By setting the trusts up in this manner, when the surviving spouse dies, we will be able to pass all of the assets to the children while only paying half (if any) of the estate tax. Using this technique will save your children over $500,000 in estate tax. In addition, the trust will avoid probate completely (saving tens of thousands of dollars) and provide your children with complete asset protection, which means that no one will be able to touch the assets you leave them, including divorce, creditors or even litigation.
Two Assignments of Property Into Trust – This document helps to fund the trusts. For all real estate, we will sign and record deeds. For all bank and brokerage accounts, we will change the title of the ownership. For personal property, however, we don’t have written title so we get the property into the trust and avoid probate by using an Assignment of Property into Trust.
Pour-Over Will – There are many negatives to distributing assets through a Will. First, all of the assets must be probated. Second, the Will offers no control over the distribution of the assets and offers no asset protection to your beneficiaries. Another disadvantage is that a Will becomes public record as soon as the person dies. Since the Will will be recorded and everyone will be able to view it, we like to make it as vanilla as possible. We simply state that a trust exists and that the distribution will be handled by the trustee. We also state that any assets that you forgot to put into the trust during your life should “pour over” into the trust immediately. The Will will also be used to name the guardian of your children.
Financial Power of Attorney – If you become incapacitated, either unconscious or mentally unaware, you need to determine who you want to handle your financial affairs. This document is very important to have on file considering that most married couples travel and vacation together. If an accident occurs for one of them, it usually occurs for both.
Designation of Health Care Surrogate – In a similar line of thought as the Financial Power of Attorney, if you become incapacitated, either unconscious or mentally unaware, you need to determine who you want to handle your medical decisions. In addition, the Designation of Health Care Surrogate should also state if you wish for your Surrogate to be able to view your medical records. Without this HIPAA language, the hospital will not allow your surrogate to view your records and make the informed decision.
Living Will – If you are in an “end-of-life” condition, meaning that you are only being kept alive by machines, the hospital will continue to keep you alive artificially no matter what your wishes are and no matter how much it costs your family, unless you have a correctly executed living will which would allow your health care surrogate to give the doctor the authorization necessary to “pull the plug.”
Free Initial Consultation with Lawyer
It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. Legal problems come to everyone. Whether it’s your son who gets in a car wreck, your uncle who loses his job and needs to file for bankruptcy, your sister’s brother who’s getting divorced, or a grandparent that passes away without a will -all of us have legal issues and questions that arise. So when you have a law question, call Ascent Law for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you!
8833 S. Redwood Road, Suite C
West Jordan, Utah
84088 United States
Telephone: (801) 676-5506
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