Drafting a Trust On Your Own

We do not recommend that you attempt to draft a trust on your own. The probate statutes and tax laws require a great deal of thought to understand. If you use language that is in conflict with those provisions, your expressed desires will not be met. Worse, your estate may be subjected to additional estate taxes or income taxes or both. Failure to provide for certain contingencies before death may mean that your trust carries out actions you did not intend, such as removing benefits from a spouse in need, or denial of the marital exemption. For instance, if you have an estate that exceeds the Exemption amount allowed by the federal Government for estate taxes, do you want a marital exemption to apply for your spouse? This question alone can create a book of discussion.

Trust language is part statute and part art, and should be drafted with great care to accomplish your desire. It is simply too complex without training.

Some companies offer you a trust drafted from a questionnaire. As if your life circumstances can be summarized in a questionnaire, they try to draft these documents as “Trust in a Box”. While they have their place, beware of the trust drafted from these organizations. In one example, trust language was being used that was not applicable in the State of California and voided the marital exemption.

Instead, consider discussing with a qualified attorney what you want to happen. Have the attorney provide your options for your particular situation. Once you have gotten the advice, you can then decide how you want your estate to be managed, and with a good attorney, you will be able to read your trust after it has been created, and understand that it is doing what you want it to do. Call us and discuss your trust needs at 1 (888) 752-7474 or Contact Us online.