Many regard a Will as the holy grail of estate planning. However, there are additional options that the heads of many estates have utilized to help plan their estate. One choice many invest in is leaving their assets in a Living Trust Fund. However, to ensure all their assets are protected, many also create a Pour-Over Will. If you’re unfamiliar with this term, you’ll want to keep reading. You’ll discover the benefits of this option and learn how a Medina, Ohio estate planning lawyer can assist you through his complex process.
How Does a Pour-Over Will Work?
A Pour-Over Will acts as a safety net for those who have their assets in a Living Trust. Many estate owners opt to create a Living Trust because it helps their inheritors avoid the Probate process. Essentially, Probate is the process in which your Will must be validated by the courts before the assets can be distributed. However, it can be tedious to ensure all your assets are in the Living Trust, and if you miss something, it may end up being distributed according to Ohio’s intestate line of succession rather than your wishes upon your passing.
However, establishing a Pour-Over Will allows you the opportunity to create a safety net for any assets you may have forgotten to transfer to your Living Trust. Depending on the size of the assets left in the Pour-Over Will, they may go through Probate before being transferred to your Trust to be distributed according to your wishes.
How Can I Create One?
If you want to create a Pour-Over Will, you must have a Living Trust first. Once you have a Trust established, you can proceed with creating a Pour-Over Will.
With a Will, you generally name individuals as the beneficiaries. However, with this kind of Will, you must name your Trust Fund as the beneficiary. This ensures that the assets in the Will are transferred to your Trust upon your death.
You may be unsure what assets are not in your Trust, whether you accidentally left them out or did not realize they were in your name. As such, you must explicitly state in your Pour-over Will that all assets in your estate that are not in your Trust should be transferred upon your passing.
A Pour-Over Will helps ensure that no assets are left out of your estate plan. As such, you can achieve peace of mind knowing that your belongings are distributed according to your wishes upon your passing.
If you’re interested in setting up a Pour-Over Will to create a safety net for your Living Trust, it’s in your best interest to enlist the assistance of an experienced estate planning attorney from Krause Law to guide you through this process. In many instances, this can be a complex legal process, so letting someone well-versed in estate law can help ensure your assets are protected. Contact our firm today to learn how we can assist you.
