Wills & Trusts
This article provides important information about wills and trusts and the important role that they play in estate planning.
- Can an attorney at McMullin Injury Law help me with my will or trust? Here at McMullin Injury Law, we only practice Personal Injury Law. However, our team has experience with other attorneys that are specialists in writing wills and trusts. Listed below are 5 attorneys that we trust and will provide the best service in Southern Utah for wills and trusts:
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- E
- What is a will? A will is someone’s request for what is going to happen to them and their things after they die. If someone doesn’t have a will and they pass away, it may be confusing or frustrating to know what is going to happen to the things they own, sometimes called assets. If they do have a will, however, the process of transferring those assets to the correct location is simple; the location for each item it is written in the will.
- What is a trust? A trust is a pool of items or assets available for a specific group or individual known as the “beneficiary”, because the trust only benefits them. An Irrevocable trust, a common type of trust, has a few parties associated with it: the Creator, the Trustee (can be multiple trustees), and the Beneficiary. In an Irrevocable trust, the trust creator’s role is to move the assets into the trust. The role of the trustee is to manage the assets in the trust. The beneficiaries are included in the trust for benefit. Some trusts are not available at the time of creation; for example, if a trust is created for a child by his/her parents, usually the child does not have access to the assets until one or both parents die. A living trust is available to the children while the parents are still living if the parents believe their child is mature enough to handle those assets.
- What is the difference between a will and a trust? Are they similar?
- A will is a document that requires someone’s assets to be transferred to the documented persons from the person who passed away. A trust can be active while the creator of the trust is still alive. The main difference between a will and a trust is that a will becomes active after the creator of the will passes away, and a trust can be active while it’s creator is still alive.
- Wills and Trusts are similar because they both require the transferring of assets to a specific person or party (the beneficiary). A person may wish to give all of his/her assets to a specific person or party in a will. However, this person may also create a trust included in their will, indicating that each one of their children receives annual funds while their parent(s) or creator of the wills and trusts are still alive.
- What does estate planning mean? Estate planning means to plan what is going to happen to the things someone owns or assets while they are still living, at the time of death, and after they die. An estate planning attorney helps you manage your ‘estate’, or your wills and trusts, power of attorney, and/or medical directives. A power of attorney is someone you choose to act on your behalf if you ever become unable to act, respond, or make decisions for yourself. A medical directive is the medical or health activity for a person that should take place if they become unable to act, respond or make decisions for his/herself.
How much does estate planning cost? An estate plan can cost from $500 – $5,000, but it all depends on what you own, what kind of estate plan you want (low, average, or high quality), and the kind of attorney you hire. Most attorneys either charge hourly for their service or charge a flat-fee. If you own lots of assets, land, or property, your estate plan will probably cost more than average, mostly because you want a high-quality estate plan, and it may take longer than normal from start to finish. If you don’t have tons of assets, then you probably don’t need to hire the most expensive attorney in town, instead find an attorney that suits you, your assets and your budget.
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