If you are in the midst of estate planning, you may be wondering whether you need a will. Perhaps you already have a trust, or are thinking of a trust, and therefore are wondering if a will is redundant or unnecessary. You may have already titled your property in such a way where you think you do not need a will, but just want to make sure your distribution intentions will be honored. Maybe you are just starting the estate planning process and simply want to know more about what a will entails. There are many things to consider when deciding whether or not to create a will, but you may find one especially important if you have minor children.
First and foremost, you can choose who will be the guardian of your minor children, and possibly avoid a family legal battle. More importantly, you can select someone who has similar values to yours. A will is the only way you can accomplish this.
Without a will or trust, you cannot control when children receive their inheritance from your estate. Children who inherit your estate through intestacy will receive their inheritance immediately if they are 18 years of age or older. If your children are under the age of 18, a Conservator will be appointed by the court to protect the assets of minor children until they turn age 18. This procedure is protective of your children, but it is expensive. The Conservator must file a report each year with the court, and may have to file a bond with the Court to make sure that the assets of the child are not squandered or lost.
With a will, you can control how and when your minor or young adult children receive their inheritance. Most people do not want their 18 year old children to receive any significant inheritance. In fact, many people don’t want their children to have control over their inheritance until they reach their 30’s, 40’s, or even older. This control is easily established by drafting the terms of the will to create a trust for children who are under a certain age. You can choose a trustee who you have confidence in, who can control and invest the assets, make distributions for education, church service or other reasonable uses, but keep the bulk of the assets from the child until they reach a suitable age that you choose. A trust can be used to accomplish the same thing, but even if you have a trust a will is necessary to make sure all assets flow to the trust when you die.
The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.