Wills and Estate Planning
The Pye Law Firm, PA has consultations with clients to discuss the
various estate planning vehicles available and to see which are best suited for each client's situation.
We prepare all of these different distinct documents:
Last Will and Testament
The document by which a person regulates the rights of others over
his property or family after death.
Pour Over Will
Used as the vehicle to capture untitled trust assets into an established trust.
Living Will
Document instructing your physicians and family of your desire not to be kept alive by heroic measures.
Durable Powers of Attorney
Powerful document that is used to delegate legal authority to another. The person who signs a Power of Attorney is called the Principal. The Power of Attorney gives legal authority to another person to make property, financial and other legal decisions for the Principal.
Special Powers of Attorney
This is a document granting the attorney-in-fact specific powers to act on behalf of the person signing the form. The specific powers to be granted need to be added (e.g., to sign and negotiate a specific real estate purchase agreement). The Special Power of Attorney is good only for a limited amount of time.
Medical Powers of Attorney
You can appoint someone to make medical decisions for you while you are incapacitated.
Directions Pertaining to Cremation
Express your desire to be cremated and the procedure for your loved ones to follow in the disposition of your cremains.
Directions Pertaining to Burial
Express your desire to be buried and where and the procedure for your loved ones to follow in the disposition of your remains.
Trusts:
- Revocable Living Trusts
A trust is a written agreement that names someone to be responsible for managing property for the benefit of others. A revocable living trust (also called a "living trust" or "revocable trust") is one type of trust. It's a "living" trust because you create it while you're alive. It's "revocable" because, as long as you're mentally competent, you can change or end the trust at any time, for any reason. You need no one's permission to do so. In Florida, a trust is revocable only if it states so in the trust agreement. Usually a living trust becomes irrevocable (not open to changes) when you die.
- Irrevocable Trusts
A trust that cannot be changed or canceled once it is set up without the consent of the beneficiary. Contributions cannot be taken out of the trust by the grantor. Irrevocable trusts offer tax advantages that revocable trusts don't, for example by enabling a person to give money and assets away even before he/she dies. Opposite of revocable trust.
- Marital Trusts
A marital trust is used to benefit the surviving spouse of the person who dies. There are many reasons for creating such a trust-- to provide asset protection for the surviving spouse, or to ensure that your children are the ultimate beneficiaries of your estate. Remember that if your spouse remarries after your death, and you leave your entire estate to your surviving spouse, their new spouse could make claims on the inheritance you had left, either in a divorce or by demanding a share at the death of your surviving spouse. If you leave the inheritance to your spouse in a marital trust, the assets would be protected from the claims of a subsequent spouse.
- Irrevocable Insurance Trusts
The idea of an irrevocable life insurance trust is to remove the policy proceeds from one's taxable estate. An irrevocable life insurance trust avoids estate taxes because it is a separate legal entity in which the individual retains no interest. In order to obtain this benefit, however, one must forfeit all control and ownership rights to the life insurance policies held in such a trust, which is why the trust is "irrevocable."
- Unified Credit or Bypass Trust
A unified credit trust utilizes the applicable estate tax exclusion amount, which allows an individual to pass a specified amount of assets to a beneficiary free of federal estate tax.
- QTIP Trusts
A QTIP trust is a flexible tool that is especially suited for estate owners who have children from a prior marriage or are concerned that a spouse may not be able to manage assets in the future. The main purpose of the QTIP trust is not tax savings, but rather to allow for asset control.
- Spendthrift Trust
A Trust that is created for the benefit of a person who is in debt (often because they are unable to control their spending) that gives an independent trustee full authority to make decisions as to how the trust funds may be spent for the benefit of the beneficiary. Creditors of the beneficiary generally can not reach the funds in the trust, because they are not actually under the control of the beneficiary.
- Support Trust
A support trust is a specific type of trust where the trustee is to provide for the beneficiary's support (such as housing, food, school tuition, etc.), but the trustee has no right to provide for luxuries. In some support trusts, the trust document may require the beneficiary to prove why any requested payment is necessary for his or her support, and part of the trustee's duty as a trustee would be to conduct his or her own review before granting or denying such a request.
- Totten Trust
Most banks have a simple form that a depositor can use to create this trust form for a bank account. In a Totten trust, the depositor is the grantor, the trustee and the only beneficiary during his or her life. A contingent beneficiary is named in the trust instrument who takes over ownership of the account upon the death of the grantor.
- Contingency Trusts
Trusts also can be used in planning for the contingency of incapacity. The Grantor may be a trustee or co-trustee, with the trust instrument providing that either trustee alone may act on behalf of the trust. The trust instrument may also provide that other the co-trustee shall act as sole trustee if the Grantor becomes incompetent.
- Credit Shelter Trusts
It is used to eliminate or reduce federal estate taxes and is typically used by a married couple whose estate exceeds the amount exempt from federal estate tax. Every individual is entitled to an estate tax credit, which essentially exempts the first $2 million in assets from tax.
- Children's Trust
You can set up a trust for your children, too. The terms of the trust can specify which of the children's expenses to pay and under what circumstances. Normally, these trusts are used to provide for the support of minor children, and the expenses paid are those incurred by the guardian in providing for the children. For older children, these trusts are often used to pay for the children's education and medical expenses until they reach a certain age or graduate from college.
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