Q: I’ve put everything in my revocable living trust so my family won’t have to deal with probate when I die. Does that mean everything will be taken care of automatically?
A: That’s a common misconception. A properly funded revocable living trust can help your family avoid probate, but there’s still work to do when someone dies or becomes disabled. There are assets to transfer, accounts to settle, paperwork to complete, and decisions to make.
We see the consequences when checking the chain of title on real property or mineral interests. Sometimes, no one took responsibility for settling or probating a grandparent’s estate. Years later, the next generation is left sorting things out.
When you create a revocable living trust, you name someone to manage things when you can no longer do so. That person may be your surviving spouse, an adult child, or another trusted individual. But being named trustee doesn’t mean that person knows what to do.
Depending on how assets are titled, there may be deeds to prepare, affidavits to file, financial institutions to contact, and death certificates to provide. Life insurance and retirement accounts may require beneficiary claims. Bills must be addressed; tax returns may be required, and assets eventually distributed according to the trust.
Even when everything has been planned correctly, there is a process to follow. At Cain, Cain & Janik, we believe preparing for that process is just as important as creating the estate plan itself.
Our Lifetime Protection Plan is built around an ongoing relationship with our clients. We help fund their trusts, keep documents current, and maintain an Asset Review Report identifying their assets and how they are held. That report becomes particularly valuable when a death occurs. Rather than asking a grieving spouse or family member to start from scratch, we already have a roadmap.
Our Estate Planners for Life™ process also includes training for successor trustees and other helpers. We want them to understand their responsibilities before they’re called upon to act, not discover them during an already difficult time.
And when that time comes, we’re here to help. Having worked with our clients over the years, we already know the surviving spouse. We often know the adult children and any unusual family circumstances. We’re not strangers being introduced during a crisis.
The goal of good estate planning isn’t simply to avoid probate or have the right documents signed. It’s to make things as manageable as possible for the people you love.
A trust doesn’t administer itself. But with good planning, prepared trustees, organized records, and experienced guidance, the process can be much easier for everyone involved.
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About the Author: Tamara Cain is an attorney, author, and estate planning educator with Cain, Cain & Janik, PLLC, in Norman, Oklahoma. She has practiced law for more than 35 years and has focused on estate planning since 2009. Through Estate Planners for Life™, she helps families protect their assets, prepare the people they love, and preserve their family legacies.
Have an estate planning question? Submit your question for a future A Matter of Trust column at www.EstatePlannersforLife.com.
