Establishing a Family Trust as the focal point of your estate plan is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself and your family. We are sure you have been assured of that fact time and again by your trusted attorney. Your family has likely thanked you, too. You even know you are doing the right thing. That said, you cannot help but be a little intimidated by a document that may feel—at least a little bit—unnecessarily complicated.

The good news is that your Trust is not as complicated as it seems, especially when you realize you do not need to master all the legal language to understand how it works. At the end of the day, it comes down to a few key roles.

Understanding these roles is not about another vocabulary lesson. It is about determining:

1. Who controls assets
2. Who benefits
3. How decisions are made

The 3 Key Players in Any Trust

Player 1: The Trustor

This is the person who originally set up the Living Trust. This person can be called many things in the Trust documents, including “Trust Maker,” “Trustor,” “Settlor,” or “Grantor.”  More often than not, just use Trustor.  Often, a joint Trust is set up for a husband and wife, with both serving as Trustors.

Player 2: The Trustee

A Trustee is the manager of the Trust. When a Living Trust is set up, the Trustor(s) usually serve as the initial Trustee(s).  Once the initial Trustee(s) die, then the “Successor Trustee” named in the Living Trust document takes over.  Sometimes, there may be “Successor Co-Trustees” named; in other words, more than one individual may be specified to act together. Trustees may be either individuals or professional organizations such as banks and trust companies. These individuals have a fiduciary responsibility to manage the Trust according to the Trustor’s wishes.

Player 3: The Beneficiary

Finally, the third party (or parties) to a Trust are the people who will inherit, known in legal terminology as the “beneficiaries”. Beneficiaries can fall into several categories:

1. The “primary” (or “current”) beneficiary, to whom distributions may be presently made by the Trustee
2. The “secondary” (or “contingent”) beneficiaries, who replace the primary beneficiary when he or she passes away
3. The “remainder” beneficiaries, who inherit only when all of the above-named beneficiaries are deceased.

The Bottom Line

Every Trust comes down to three roles: someone who creates it, someone who manages it, and someone who benefits from it. If you focus on those roles, you will find that it ultimately does not matter how complex all the remaining documents look, sound, and feel. It is your estate planning attorney’s job to worry about that part.

Call Leigh Hilton PLLC Today!!

Having a competent attorney in your corner will help you and your family navigate the often overwhelming waters of protecting everything you own and everyone you love. That is our job, and we think we do it better than anyone else. Call Leigh Hilton PLLC so we can help ensure you and your family are taken care of in the best possible way.

Leigh Hilton PLLC wants to be your first call every time for any estate planning need. We look forward to serving you.