Long Island Trusts Lawyers Protecting Clients’ Assets

Also Serving: New York City

Many people believe that estate planning, including trusts, is only for the ultra-wealthy. However, when most people inventory their possessions, they are surprised to learn that their assets are much more valuable than they had supposed. Your hard-earned wealth took you a lifetime to create, and it should be protected in the best way possible. One of the most useful tools in estate planning is a trust.

Trusts come with many benefits, including being able to dictate how and when your beneficiaries will receive your property. Trusts also protect your wealth from creditors, minimize estate taxes, and offer more privacy for your family members after your death.

If you want to take advantage of this excellent estate planning tool, please reach out to a caring and capable trusts lawyer like those at Davidov Law Group. Our trusts attorneys can help you determine the best kind of trust for your situation and will carefully craft a legally sound document that gives the best protection for your assets. Contact our talented legal team right away for a free consultation by calling (516) 253-1366.

What is a Trust Used for in Estate Planning?

Trusts offer a variety of uses, depending on your unique situation and your family’s needs. A trust is an account that holds your assets in a special way. The assets may be accessed only as described in the terms of the trust. A carefully crafted trust will allow the grantor, or creator, to disburse their funds at the time and in the way they desire. This may even include the grantor having access as a beneficiary in some cases!

Trusts may hold virtually any kind of asset the grantor deems valuable. This could include bank accounts, savings accounts, retirement accounts, homes, land, rental properties, businesses, vehicles, and more. The trust is created by the grantor and administered by the trustee, who is named in the document. This individual should be someone the grantor trusts implicitly, as they will have a fiduciary duty to carry out the trust terms precisely as the grantor intended. The trust will also name beneficiaries, including a spouse, children, grandchildren, friends, charities, extended family members, and even pets.

For help including a trust in your estate plan, please reach out to our attentive and dedicated legal team. We will be happy to explain the various types of trusts and help you determine which direction to proceed for you and your family.

How Can Having a Trust Help Me?

Trusts are a valuable tool in many estate plans. They give the creator a great deal of protection while they are alive and control over their wealth after they die.

Some advantages to having a trust in your estate plan are:

Protects your assets from creditors, judgments, and lawsuits
Gives greater privacy to your family members
Avoids the probate process
Allows you to dictate which family member will receive what assets, as well as how and when the funds will be disbursed
Minimizes your tax burden
Allows you to assign a non-family member as an heir, including close friends, extended relatives, unmarried partners, and even pets

Contact the experienced trusts attorneys at our law firm right away to learn more about how creating a trust can protect you and your family.

What Are Some Different Kinds of Trusts?

Trusts generally fall into two categories: revocable and irrevocable trusts. A revocable trust comes with greater flexibility and allows the grantor to adjust the terms of the trust during their lifetime. However, revocable trusts offer less tax relief than irrevocable trusts. In an irrevocable trust, the grantor will not be able to easily access their wealth or change the terms of the trust. But these estates will be protected from estate tax and from being counted as taxable income.

Some additional forms of trusts that are commonly used in New York are:

Testamentary trusts – These trusts are created by a will and provide for the distribution of the grantor’s estate.
Charitable trusts – Charitable trusts allow the grantor to include their preferred charity as a beneficiary of their wealth.
Living trusts – In a living trust, the grantor may also be a beneficiary. This means they could gain access to their wealth during their lifetime while benefiting from the tax benefits and protection from creditors that trusts offer.
Credit shelter trusts – Married couples use these trusts to reduce or even eliminate the tax burden on a surviving spouse.
Irrevocable life insurance trusts – Also known as an ILIT, the irrevocable life insurance trust may not be altered or terminated and grants the life insurance payout to the heirs of the grantor’s choice.
Special needs trusts – This type of trust allows a grantor to provide for a family member with special needs after their death.
Spendthrift trusts – These trusts are helpful when leaving money for a beneficiary you feel will not be ready to handle a large sum of money at once. The trustee will disburse the funds according to your instructions, such as in smaller amounts over a longer period of time.
Asset protection trusts – Asset protection trusts are self-settling, meaning the grantor may gain access to the funds while they are still living. These trusts keep your assets safe from creditors and lawsuits that may arise.

What Are the Duties of a Trustee in Trust Administration?

The trustee has a fiduciary duty to follow the trust’s instructions rather than distribute the trust’s assets according to their preference. This person should be someone the grantor has confidence in, such as a close family member.

Some of the duties of a trustee are:

Assessing the value of trust assets
Filing with the proper authorities, such as the IRS or surrogate’s court
Alerting beneficiaries of the distribution of the trust
Distributing assets according to the grantor’s wishes
Ensuring each heir meets the qualifications outlined in the trust

If you need help choosing a trustee, or if you have been named as trustee for someone else’s trust, you should seek legal counsel from knowledgeable trusts attorneys. Contact Davidov Law Group right away for help with all of your estate planning needs.

Why is it Important to Have the Right Trust Lawyers?

The creation and distribution of your trust affect how well your assets are protected and whether your loved ones receive your wealth the way you wish. Not having a trust or estate plan in place could mean your valuables are subject to probate, a long and costly process that could end in your assets going to people you would not have chosen.

With comprehensive estate legal services on Long Island, you can move forward with confidence knowing your trust is legally sound and protects you and your family from creditors, unnecessary taxes, and probate. Your lawyers will be a valuable ally as they help you prepare a trust that minimizes your family’s tax burden, implements a business succession plan, and allocates your possessions in the way you desire.

Should You Hire Our Trusts Attorneys?

Creating the right trust for your estate plan can be overwhelming, with the many types of trusts and ways they may be used. The best choice you can make is to consult with an experienced legal professional who will analyze your situation and listen carefully to your goals and needs.

At Davidov Law Group, we have personally witnessed the devastation that comes with not having an effective estate plan. We enjoy helping families prepare for the future by creating the perfect plan, including trusts. We have helped countless clients, and we realize that no family is alike. We promise to dedicate ourselves to building the right estate plan for you. We will take the time to explain your options so you can make the right choices for your family.

Call us today at (516) 253-1366 to schedule your free consultation!