What Are Trusts?

Types of Trusts

Revocable Living Trusts

Testamentary Trust

What Is the Difference Between a Trust and a Will?

Why Set up a Trust? – The Benefits

Remain in Control

Tax Benefits

Avoid Florida Probate Court

Protection

Ongoing Transfers

Trusts Protect Special Needs Individuals or Medicaid Recipients

Key Takeaways – What Are Trusts?

• A trust is a special type of legal document that holds assets for beneficiaries to receive after the trust creator’s death.
• There are the parties involved in trusts: grantors, trustees and beneficiaries.
• Trusts set rules on when and how assets are distributed.
• Trusts ensure your wishes are retained, even after death.
• Trusts can remove the need for probate.

Hire an Estate Planning Attorney for Trusts in St Petersburg, FL

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What Is Probate?

What Is a Probate Lawyer?

Do I Need a Probate Lawyer in Florida?

To Overcome The Technical Hurdles

To Avoid Family Conflict

If a Family Member is Making Threats

Determining Beneficiaries

Challenging the Validity of a Will

• A lack of signing formalities.
• If the person who made the Will lacked proper mental capacity when it was signed.
• Undue influence
• Fraud

Creating Estate Plans

Surviving Spouses

Creditor Claims

Probate Attorney When There Is a Will

Probate Attorney When There Is No Will

Should We Use Summary Administration If Available?

• The Will leaves property to many beneficiaries, who would each have to sign a contract to sell the property and other related papers.
• The beneficiaries include minors, so guardianships may need to be set up until they’re adults. However, with a probate attorney, you may be able to avoid that through the Florida Uniform Transfers to Minors Act.
• If a beneficiary is uncontactable, then summary administration cannot work without their presence. Probate, however, can.
• If a beneficiary refuses to cooperate, formal administration will likely be required, improperly filing summary administration may actually lengthen the probate process.

Is It Too Late to Start Probate?

Do I Need to Appear in Florida To Probate an Estate?

Hire a Probate Attorney in Florida

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1. The testator: the individual who creates the will,
2. The executor: the individual responsible for administering the estate after the death of the testator, and
3. The beneficiaries: the people who will receive some asset(s) from the estate.

Advantages of a Will

• Allows the opportunity to name guardians of children under 21.
• The ability to clarify funeral arrangements.
• Wills are easily amenable, as they do not take effect until after death.
• Allows the opportunity to make donations to institutions or charities.
• Easier to execute.

Disadvantages of a Will:

• Subject to probate (court process that includes having a judge distribute assets and follows the specifications outlined in the will)
• Does not maintain privacy after death.
• Can lead to disputes among beneficiaries.

What Is a Trust?

1. The grantor/settler: the person who creates the trust,
2. The trustee: the entity that holds legal title to the estate, and
3. The beneficiary: the individual who will assume control of the trust in the future.

Advantages of a Trust

• Avoidances of the probate process.
• Continuation of management in the event of illness or disability.
• In some cases, trusts can lessen the burden of taxes.
• Maintains privacy after death.
• Protection from court challenges and disputes.

Disadvantages of a Trust:

• A trust is unable to name guardians or caretakers for children.
• The creation of a trust can be complicated and legally complex.

Will vs. Trust: Key Differences

Effective Date

Probate

Public vs. Private

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney

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Benefit 1: Dynasty Trusts Remove Assets from the Transfer Tax System

The primary benefit of a Dynasty Trust is that when you transfer assets to trust during your lifetime, the assets become sheltered from the application of future wealth transfer taxes. There are three types of federal wealth transfer tax: the estate tax, the gift tax, and the generation-skipping transfer tax (or “GST tax” for short).

In 2020, the federal estate and gift exemption is approximately $11.6 million per person. This exemption is unified, meaning that taxable gifts during your lifetime reduce the amount of assets you can pass at death estate tax-free. Taxable gifts mean the value of any uncompensated transfers you make in a given calendar year that exceed the gift tax annual exclusion amount, which in 2020 is $15,000.00 per recipient. This means that in 2020, you can give up to $15,000.00 to multiple individuals without paying a gift tax. Let’s look at an example:

Example 1: Mark is an unmarried individual residing in Florida with two adult daughters. In 2020, Mark gives each of his daughters checks in the amount of $15,000.00. Because the gifts do not exceed the gift tax annual exclusion amount of $15,000.00 per recipient, Mark does not have to report the transfers to the IRS, and his $11.6 million estate tax exemption remains intact.

Example 2: Same facts as above, except that in 2020, Mark gives his daughters checks in the amount of $20,000.00 each. Because the gifts exceed the gift tax annual exclusion, Mark must report the gifts to the IRS on a federal gift tax return (IRS Form 709), and Mark’s $11.6 million estate tax exemption will be reduced by $10,000.00 (the amount the gifts exceed the gift tax annual exclusion per recipient). Mark will not be required to pay a gift tax unless and until his $11.6 million exemption has been consumed by taxable gifts during his lifetime. In 2020, the estate and gift tax rate is 40 percent.

The imposition of the GST tax is in addition to the estate and gift tax. In 2020, the amount of the GST tax exemption is the same as the estate and gift tax exemption (approximately $11.6 million). The GST tax is triggered by transfers to a “skip person” (typically a grandchild or more remote descendant) that exceed the transferor’s available GST tax exemption. The GST tax rate also is 40 percent. For example:

Example 3: Mark dies in 2020 with an estate valued at $20 million, which exceeds his estate tax exemption of $11.6 million by approximately $8 million. Mark’s revocable trust devises his entire trust estate to separate spendthrift trusts for each of his four grandchildren ($5 million per grandchild). In addition to an estate tax liability of approximately $3,200,000.00, Mark’s grandchildren’s inheritance will be reduced by an additional $3,200,000.00 in GST tax. Thus, in this example, the grandchildren’s trusts will be funded with $13,600,000.00 of the original $20,000,000.00 trust value.

What could Mark have done differently to avoid more than $6 million of estate and GST taxes? Frankly, a lot of things. But for purposes of this article, we will focus on using Dynasty Trusts to reduce wealth transfer tax:

• First, Mark could have established and funded a Dynasty Trust for each of his grandchildren during his lifetime, instead of waiting until his demise when his net worth likely had peaked. Ideally, he would have done this before his net worth had accumulated beyond his available exemptions.
• Second, Mark would have started utilizing his gift tax annual exclusion to fund each of the Dynasty Trusts with at least $15,000.00 of assets per year to reduce the value of his estate in a tax-free manner.
• Third, Mark could have utilized his estate and gift tax exemption to make larger asset transfers to the Dynasty Trusts, thereby removing the value of the assets and any future appreciation from his overall estate, again without paying any wealth transfer tax.
• Lastly, Mark could have included a formula clause in his revocable trust to devise additional assets to the grandchildren’s Dynasty Trusts at death, but only to the extent of his remaining GST tax exemption, with the balance of the assets either passing to Dynasty Trusts for his daughters, or possibly to charity or a private foundation in order to generate an estate tax charitable deduction to offset the estate liability otherwise due to the IRS.

Once the assets are transferred to the Dynasty Trust, they become sheltered from the application of future wealth transfer taxes, meaning the assets will continue to appreciate for many generations to come free of estate and GST taxes. The Trustee of the Dynasty Trust is empowered to use the trust funds to pay for the health care, education, maintenance and support of the beneficiaries. The Trustee also can be authorized to use funds to pay for travel and residential and vacation properties, all for the use, enjoyment and happiness of the beneficiaries.

Benefit 2: Dynasty Trusts Provide Asset Protection for your Beneficiaries

To the extent a beneficiary of the Dynasty Trust would like to purchase a home or a vacation residence, the Trustee can use the trust funds to purchase these assets on behalf of the beneficiary. In other words, the Trustee, not the beneficiary, will own these investments for the use and enjoyment of the beneficiaries. The Dynasty Trust will contain a provision prohibiting the Trustee from distributing assets to or for the benefit of a beneficiary’s creditors. This type of provision is known as a “spendthrift clause.” Because the Trustee – and not the beneficiary – controls the trust investments, and because the Dynasty Trust contains a valid spendthrift clause, a beneficiary’s creditors cannot reach trust assets to satisfy a claim or judgment against the beneficiary.

Even responsible beneficiaries who are financially savvy could be involved in an automobile accident or divorce which otherwise would expose his or her inheritance but for the Dynasty Trust. Additionally, even the best physicians and attorneys are exposed to potential malpractice claims by virtue of their occupations. Therefore, a Dynasty Trust with a valid spendthrift clause is one of the strongest asset protection vehicles available to protect your beneficiaries’ inheritance from potential creditor exposure.

Benefit 3: Dynasty Trusts Are Flexible

Dynasty Trusts can be prepared in a way that allows them to adapt and react to future changes in the law and even the unique personality traits, talents and limitations of beneficiaries who do not exist yet but who will be born in the future. There also are several flexibility features to consider during your lifetime. For example, it is possible to structure the Dynasty Trust as a “grantor trust” for income tax purposes, so that even though you have transferred ownership of the assets for wealth transfer tax purposes, you still are considered the owner of the assets for income tax purposes. Why do this? Because it allows you to pay tax on any income generated by trust assets during your lifetime, thus allowing the assets to appreciate and compound much like a Roth IRA. The Dynasty Trust can be designed to turn off grantor trust status at such point you no longer wish to pay the income tax liability. If grantor trust status is turned off, then the trust becomes responsible for the income tax liability. Although irrevocable trusts can be subject to high income tax rates, this can be minimized by making distributions to trust beneficiaries who may be in much lower income tax brackets.

Grantor trust status also can be useful to maximize how assets are transferred to the Dynasty Trust. For example, instead of only using gifting, you also can “sell” assets to your Dynasty Trust during your lifetime by means of an installment sale. Because the transfer is a sale and not a gift, no gift tax will be due, and your estate tax exemption will not be reduced. Additionally, because you are considered both the owner of the assets being transferred (the seller) and the owner of the Dynasty Trust (the buyer) for income purposes, there is no capital gain due on the sale (essentially you are selling the assets to yourself). The only requirement is that the installment sale must include a minimal interest rate, which is documented by a promissory note between you and the Trustee of the Dynasty Trust. This technique allows you to transfer high-yield assets to the Dynasty Trust during your lifetime, thereby removing future appreciation from your estate, without having to pay wealth transfer tax or otherwise reduce your available exemptions.

Dynasty Trusts can be layered into your existing estate plan quite easily. If your estate includes stock in a family or closely-held business, using Dynasty Trusts, combined with tax-free annual gifting and low interest installment sales, can significantly reduce or even eliminate the wealth transfer tax your beneficiaries otherwise would have to pay upon your demise. The Dynasty Trust will shelter the trust assets from wealth transfer taxes for up to 360 years and provide your beneficiaries with significant asset protection for their lifetimes, thereby preserving your legacy for generations to come.

Choosing whether to have a Will vs. a Trust as the cornerstone of your estate plan, you should consider whether any of the factors noted above apply to you. While it is always appropriate for the estate planning attorney to make a recommendation, even a strong recommendation, one way or the other, the attorney’s main job is to provide you with the information required to make the best decision based on your unique estate planning goals and budget.

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What Does It Mean to “Fund” the Trust, and Why Is It So Important?

• Real Property – In Florida, attorneys refer to real estate as “real property.” This is probably the easiest type of asset to coordinate with your Revocable Trust, because generally all it takes is a quitclaim deed. However, the deed needs to be prepared correctly and recorded in the official records in the county where the property is located. If you are transferring your Florida homestead (i.e., your primary residence) to your Revocable Trust, then it is recommended that both the quitclaim deed and the trust document contain special verbiage reserving your homestead rights under the Florida Constitution; this ensures that the property appraiser does not disturb your existing homestead exemption and save-our-homes cap benefits when the deed to trust is recorded.

• Tangible Personal Property – Your estate planning attorney should prepare an assignment transferring your tangible personal property to your Revocable Trust. Examples of tangible personal property (“TPP”) include motor vehicles, boats and personal watercraft, household goods, appliances, furniture and furnishings, pictures, silverware, china, glass, books, clothing, and jewelry. Following your demise, your Successor Trustee can utilize the assignment of TPP, along with a copy of the trust document and your death certificate, to transfer your motor vehicles and marine vessels at the DMV without the need for probate court or other court order.
• Business Interests – Transferring business interests to your Revocable Trust can be accomplished with a relatively simple assignment prepared by your estate planning attorney. However, if your stock or membership units have transfer restrictions, then your attorney should assist you by obtaining permission from the company’s leadership to allow the assignment to the Revocable Trust. This is easy to do and seems to work with every company upon request.

• Regular Bank Accounts – When it comes to regular bank accounts, such as checking, savings and money market accounts, you have two options: make your Revocable Trust the owner of the account or the pay-on-death (“POD”) beneficiary of the account. Depending on the internal rules of your financial institution, making the Trust the owner (‘Plan A”) may be simple or complicated. If your bank fits the latter description, then “Plan B” is to make the Trust the POD beneficiary, which is typically just a matter of updating your beneficiary paperwork at the bank.

• Taxable Brokerage Accounts – Non-retirement investment accounts containing stocks, bonds, mutual funds and ETFs are also relatively easy to coordinate with your Revocable Trust. Once you execute your Revocable Trust, your estate planning attorney should send instructions that all taxable brokerage accounts should be re-titled into the name of the Trust. After this happens, the Trust is considered the owner of the account and thus avoids probate when you die (which is the whole point of your Revocable Trust in the first place). Additionally, if you become incapacitated, your “Successor Trustee” named in the trust document will have quick and relatively seamless access to the account assets and can communicate with your financial advisor freely on your behalf. All of the income tax attributes of the investment account will continue to flow through to you on your personal income tax return (IRS Form 1040).

• Tax-Deferred Accounts – Accounts that are “qualified” (by the IRS) or otherwise tax-deferred are treated differently by the IRS. You cannot make your Revocable Trust the owner of these accounts (by law), because they must be owned by an individual. Common examples of tax-deferred accounts include retirement accounts such as IRAs, 401(k) accounts, and 403(b) accounts. There are special steps that must be followed to properly coordinate these types of accounts with a Revocable Trust. If your beneficiaries are minors (under age 18 in Florida), inexperienced or bad with money, or suffer from an addiction issue, then it may be worth the extra effort to coordinate your tax-deferred accounts with your Revocable Trust. However, after the passage of the SECURE Act, for most clients it now makes more sense to name individual beneficiaries on their IRAs and 401(k)s. This is because most non-spouse beneficiaries are now required to withdraw the account assets over a mandatory 10-year period. If your beneficiaries are well-adjusted adults, this is a simpler option versus making the account payable to the Trust as an intermediary.

• Roth IRAs – Similar to Traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs can be made payable to a Revocable Trust provided certain tax requirements are met by including specific verbiage in the trust document. As with IRAs, the pros and cons of naming the Revocable Trust vs. naming individual beneficiaries should be discussed with your estate planning attorney.

• Life Insurance – It is simple to make your Revocable Trust the beneficiary of your life insurance policy. When you die, the insurance company will pay the death proceeds to your Successor Trustee, which can provide your Trustee with great flexibility and liquidity to pay any income or estate taxes that are due, property taxes and insurance, and generally to have cash available to meet the needs of your beneficiaries.

What Happens If an Asset Is Inadvertently Left out of Your Revocable Trust?

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Revocable Trusts Avoid Probate

Most of my clients want to avoid probate for the following reasons:

• The Personal Representative (or “PR” for short, also known as the “Executor”) in a probate proceeding must wait for the court to grant “Letters of Administration” in order to access estate assets, whereas the Successor Trustee named in a Revocable Trust can access trust assets immediately without court supervision or interference. Thus there is virtually no time delay in a trust scenario, whereas a probate proceeding typically takes anywhere from nine months to a year or more.

• In probate proceedings, the PR is required to notify “reasonably ascertainable” creditors and publish a legal “Notice to Creditors” in a newspaper, thereby providing an open forum for potential creditors to make claims against the estate. On the other hand, the Trustee of a Revocable Trust has no affirmative duty to notify creditors regarding the nature and value of trust assets. A creditor seeking to access trust assets would need to file a separate lawsuit in order to subpoena this information. In short, the Trustee of a Revocable Trust has much more leverage in dealing and negotiating with potential creditors after the person who created the Revocable Trust dies.

• Both probate and trust administration involve fees and costs. In probate administration, the fees tend to be higher. This is because Florida law provides that certain percentage fees charged by the PR and his or her attorney are presumed to be reasonable. For example, the PR and his or her attorney each can charge a 3% commission on the first $1 million of probate assets, and then 2.5% commission on the next several million, with the percentage fee gradually decreasing as probate asset values increase. For example, a $2 million probate estate would entitle the PR to a $55,000 commission, as well as the attorney for the PR a $55,000 commission = $110,000.00+ in fees, not to mention court costs. This example is illustrated as follows:

Parties to the Trust

A Trust always has at least three parties:

Power to Modify and Revoke

Income Tax Effect of Revocable Trust

Choosing a Successor Trustee

Structuring Your Beneficiaries’ Inheritance

Funding the Trust

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A Trustee is a fiduciary who oversees assets held in trust for the benefit of one or more beneficiaries. A “fiduciary” is a person or organization that acts on behalf of another person to manage assets. Fiduciaries are bound by ethical duties, including the duties of good faith and loyalty. Here are the main qualities to consider in selecting a Trustee:

1.) A Trustee Should Be Organized and Detail-Oriented

Serving as Trustee involves overseeing trust investments, communicating regularly with beneficiaries, providing detailed accountings showing how trust funds have been allocated and spent, filing tax returns, and exercising discretion when a beneficiary requests a distribution that is permissible (but not necessarily mandated by the terms of the trust). Thus it is imperative that the Trustee has impeccable recordkeeping and organizational skills.

2.) A Trustee Should Be Honest and Loyal

A fundamental duty of the Trustee is that he or she must administer the trust solely in the interests of the beneficiaries. Importantly, the Trustee must be adept at identifying potential conflicts of interest and avoid the same at all costs. Choose a Trustee who is above all else, honest and transparent.

3.) A Trustee Should Be Financially Stable

The ideal Trustee is, at minimum, financially literate, but ideally, financially savvy. Never choose someone as Trustee who has a messy financial history or creditor issues, which could jeopardize his or her ability to administer the trust prudently and avoid conflicts of interest.

4.) A Trustee Should Be Emotionally Stable

The ideal Trustee is emotionally stable, reliable, and composed. Often, particularly with respect to beneficiaries who have addiction or spendthrift issues, the Trustee will encounter backlash if a beneficiary’s request for funds is denied (or approved but with restrictions the beneficiary does not like). The Trustee should be capable of standing up against difficult personalities while at the same time remaining calm and professional under pressure.

5.) A Trustee Should Be Emotionally Intelligent

Going one step further, a Trustee also should be emotionally intelligent. Emotional intelligence or “EQ” is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically.

6.) A Trustee Should Remain Impartial

If a trust has two or more beneficiaries, the Trustee has a duty to act impartially in investing, managing, and distributing trust property. In other words, the Trustee is not allowed to play favorites. This is especially important to consider when nominating a family member to serve as Trustee for other family members.

7.) A Trustee Should Be Available

Naming an individual who has all of the qualities described in this list as Trustee will not do any good if the individual is not available to serve in the role. For example, I’ve heard clients say, “My son is a successful stockbroker on Wall Street; he would be the perfect Trustee.” Maybe, but maybe not – depending on whether he has the time and availability to serve as Trustee in the first place. Similarly, I’ve heard, “My daughter is an incredibly intelligent physician; she would be the perfect Trustee.” In reality, she is probably overwhelmed with running her practice; also, intelligence in one area, such as medicine, does not necessarily translate to the emotional intelligence and financial savvy required to serve as an effective Trustee.

8.) A Trustee Should Be Willing to Seek Help When Needed

An individual Trustee should not be expected to fly solo; rather, the ideal Trustee is able to identify personal strengths and weaknesses and seek help when needed. For example, it is common for Trustees to employ “helpers,” such as attorneys, CPAs, accountants, and investment advisors, to guide them in fulfilling their fiduciary duties. Thus you should choose a Trustee who is not afraid to seek the expertise of professionals when appropriate.

For some clients, choosing an individual family member to serve as Trustee may offer advantages, particularly when the family member is familiar with family dynamics and values, has experience in law and finance, and may be willing to serve as Trustee for a discounted rate. On the other hand, choosing one family member as Trustee over another can enhance family discord and the perception of favoritism, particularly among siblings. In such a case, it may be more appropriate to choose a corporate fiduciary, such as a bank or trust company, to serve as Trustee. For example, a corporate fiduciary may be an ideal solution in a blended family situation, when there is known acrimony among beneficiaries, when the trust is expected to last for many generations, or when the estate contains complex assets, such as a closely held business.

A frequent initial objection to naming a corporate fiduciary as Trustee is the expense involved. Yes, it’s true that corporate fiduciaries are entitled to be paid for serving as Trustee, but so is Uncle Tony. Whereas the corporate fiduciary is experienced and heavily regulated, Uncle Tony likely is neither. Ultimately, if you are considering using a corporate fiduciary as Trustee, it is important to review the company’s fee schedule and find out if there is a minimum financial requirement. For example, many corporate fiduciaries require $1 million in assets under management to serve as Trustee.

In some cases, I recommend a combination approach. For example, if there is a family member who has an affinity or special way of dealing with an otherwise difficult beneficiary, and the family member is honest and loyal, but not necessarily financially savvy, consider naming the family member to serve as Co-Trustee with a corporate fiduciary. The individual Co-Trustee will manage the expectations and emotional volatility of the beneficiary and communicate the beneficiary’s needs to the corporate Co-Trustee, while the corporate Co-Trustee will ensure that investments are allocated properly and legal notices, accountings, and tax returns are filed on time. This combination approach can be a win-win for all involved.

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What If the Federal Estate Tax Laws Change?

Can Trusts Avoid or at Least Minimize Taxes?

• For example, the IRS allows you to leave unlimited assets at death to your spouse, who will not have to pay any estate tax otherwise due until she dies. In other words, her estate will be responsible for the estate tax due, but only to the extent the remaining assets exceed her available estate tax exemption when she dies. This concept is known as the unlimited marital deduction, and estate planners frequently take advantage of it, especially for larger estates. Essentially, the unlimited marital deduction allows you to delay the imposition of the estate tax until your surviving spouse dies; the estate tax may even be avoided entirely if your surviving spouse spends down the assets below her exemption amount.

• For example, did you know that the IRS wants to tax your grandchildren’s inheritance in addition to the federal estate tax? A seasoned estate planning attorney can advise you on how the generation skipping transfer tax (also known as “GST” or “GSTT” tax) may apply to your estate plan, and, better yet, include the necessary provisions in your trust to minimize or even avoid the GSTT tax altogether.

Do Trusts Pay Income Tax?

• The most common type of trust in estate planning is a revocable trust. Revocable trusts generally are pass-through entities for federal income tax purposes. This means that the trust will not interfere with how you currently report your federal income tax to the IRS: all items of income, deduction, depreciation, and credit will continue to flow through to you on your personal Form 1040, and the trust will not be required to file its own income tax return during your lifetime. Many clients simply assign their social security number to their revocable trust during their lifetime. The general rule is that when you die, your revocable trust becomes irrevocable (because you are no longer alive to modify or revoke it), at which time the taxation of the trust will change.

• The income taxation of irrevocable trusts is more nuanced (as compared to revocable trusts). Essentially, an irrevocable trust can be designed to be taxed as its own entity (like a corporation), but there are also ways to have an irrevocable trust taxed to a particular person, such as the person who created it (the “settlor” or “grantor”). Your estate planning attorney should discuss these options with you before the irrevocable trust is established.

Can Trusts Avoid Tax Altogether?

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What is a Revocable Trust?

What is an Irrevocable Trust?

Do Revocable Trusts and Irrevocable Trusts Protect You Against Creditors?

• Application to Revocable Trusts: Recall that the main benefit of establishing a revocable trust during your lifetime is probate avoidance; your revocable trust does nothing for you from an asset protection standpoint. However, when you die, your revocable trust becomes irrevocable (because you are no longer alive to modify it). When this happens and trust assets are held in further trust for the benefit of your beneficiaries (for example, your children), such assets will be protected from your children’s creditors, as long as the trusts are considered “spendthrift” trusts under Florida law.

• Application to Irrevocable Trusts: Similarly, Florida law does not allow you to place assets in an irrevocable trust for your own benefit and circumvent your own creditors, whether such creditors exist now or arise in the future. However, when you fund an irrevocable trust during your lifetime with assets for the benefit of a third party beneficiary, such assets will be protected from the beneficiary’s creditors, as long as the trust is considered a “spendthrift” trust under Florida law.

What Is a Spendthrift Trust?

How Do You Create a Spendthrift Trust Under Florida Law?

Should the Beneficiary’s Trust Last for Her Lifetime? or Should It Terminate at a Certain Age?

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Who Is Entitled to Your Estate Assets When You Die?

Step 1: Does the Asset Have Any Surviving Co-Owners?

Step 2: Does the Asset Have Any Designated Beneficiaries?

• “pay-on-death” or “POD” beneficiaries
• “transfer-on-death” or “TOD” beneficiaries
• “in trust for” or “ITF” beneficiaries
• remaindermen

Step 3: Does the Deceased Person Have a Will?

Step 4: If the Deceased Person Does Not Have a Will, Then Who Are His or Her Intestate Heirs?

• First, your spouse;
• Second, your descendants;
• Third, your parents;
• Fourth, your siblings; and
• Fifth, your more remote next of kin (e.g., nieces, nephews, and cousins).

Step 5: Locate the Intestate Heirs.

Step 6: Escheat to the State of Florida.

1. There are no surviving joint owners (JTROS); and
2. There are no surviving designated beneficiaries; and
3. If there is a Will, none of the people named in the Will survive the person; and
4. If there is no Will, or if all of the people named in the Will fail to survive the deceased person, none of such person’s distanced relatives, no matter how remote, can be located.

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