Archive for the ‘Trust Administration’ Category

Why is Michigan Probate Viewed as Something to be Avoided?

Written by Christopher J. Berry, Esq. on August 12, 2008 – 6:45 pm -

The word “probate” is derived from the Latin phrase “to prove.” The legal definition of probate means a court process by which a certain instrument is proved to be your Will. Typically when people use the word “probate” they are talking about the whole estate administration procedure. The transfer of assets of the deceased to his or her heirs. Technically, “probate” only refers to the process of administering assets through the court system.

The first reason Michigan Probate is viewed as an evil is the emotional connotations attached to death and the legal proceedings. People have difficulty dealing with the emotions in the process.

Anorther reason is that almost every family has a story about a disastrous result which occurred when someone passed and their assets had to be probated. Deep dark secrets can come to light in the public proceeding. Remember, Michigan probate is a public court proceeding.

There is also a financial reason why Michigan probate is viewed as something to be avoided. It can be expensive. Not only through legal fees, but also court costs and taxes if proper measures are not taken ahead of time.

Remember a will does not avoid the probate system and does not ensure that your estate will be administered smoothly. There can be public, nasty, will contests in probate court.

Taking all these reasons into account, it is no wonder that many clients choose to use a revocable living trust to avoid the probate system in Michigan.

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Posted in Estate Planning, Living Trusts, Michigan Probate, Trust Administration, Wills | No Comments »

How to Wrap Up a Trust in Michigan

Written by Christopher J. Berry, Esq. on August 6, 2008 – 8:08 pm -

Our firm assists clients as trustees in administering Michigan Trusts. Some tips for wraping up a trust include the following

  1. Carefully and accurately read the terms of the trust agreement, as well as the powers and limitations of the trustee’s power.
  2. File final tax returns.
  3. Determine the shares for the beneficiaries and heirs after any expenses.
  4. Prepare any conveyances or liquidate the assets.
  5. Distribute assets and obtain receipts from the beneficiaries and releases and indemnifications when appropriate.
  6. Prepare the final report and provide it to any interested persons.
  7. Get court approval of the final report when it’s appropriate.

If you have any questions or want more information, contact me at (248)-865-4700.

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Posted in Estate Planning, Living Trusts, Michigan Probate, Trust Administration | No Comments »

Funding Your Living Trust

Written by Christopher J. Berry, Esq. on August 5, 2008 – 4:37 pm -

At our firm, estate planning is more than just preparing documents. Estate planning is about providing expertise and counseling from the beginning of our client engagement through the funding of the trust, if a trust based estate plan is used.
What is meant by “funding of the trust?” It is the process of putting assets into the newly created revocable living trust. In Michigan, this is accomplished through a few various strategies depending on what type of asset is being used. If a residence is going to be put into the trust, then a deed will be used. If life insurance is used to fund a trust, then a beneficiary designation form is used.
A good analogy that I use with my clients is that a trust is like a suitcase. Once we have executed the documents the suitcase (trust) is created. The next step is to put things (assets) into the suitcase (funding the trust). While this is not legal work per se, I still assist clients by providing explicit instructions on how to work with each asset along with opening myself for any questions regarding specific assets.
This is a key step that you will not know how to properly execute if you download your forms from the internet or buy a software program or, and this one was new to me this week, copy someone else trust and fill in your name. This is where you cannot put a price on the counseling and expertise of a Michigan estate planning lawyer. Otherwise you have an empty suitcase (trust) with nothing in it (not properly funded). You not only fail to utilize the trust to pass assets directly to beneficiaries, but you also fail to avoid Michigan probate.
So, make sure your trust, however it was created is properly funded and continues to be properly funded through annual meetings with an estate planning attorney.
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Posted in Estate Planning, Foundations, Living Trusts, Michigan Probate, Trust Administration | No Comments »

Do It Yourself Estate Planning Gone Horribly Wrong

Written by Christopher J. Berry, Esq. on July 24, 2008 – 3:55 pm -

I have seen a few instances where clients have brought in their old “estate planning” documents that they have attempted to do themselves. Time and time again they are wrought with problems. Both the client and I are grateful that we were able to put a professional plan in place before anything happened and those documents would be tested.

A colleague down in Florida (read his blog here) has worked on a case where unfortunatly, an individual attempted a do it yourself approach and ended up costing his intended beneficiaires nearly $75,000.

That $50, internet form doesn’t seem so cheap when it costs $75,000 to your beneficiaries on the back end.

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Posted in Estate Planning, Michigan Probate, Personal Reflections, Trust Administration | 2 Comments »