Benefits of Hiring a Trust Administration Attorney
These days trustees have become an essential tool in estate planning. The duties and responsibilities of the trustee can be quite overwhelming and thus it is best that you have a guiding light that makes the entire journey as a trustee easier. That is why there is a Trust Administration Attorney to help you out.
What Does a Trustee Do?
Before talking about the benefits of having a trust administration attorney by your side, you may want to know who is a trustee and what do they do? A trustee is quite similar to a personal representative in a will, however, a trustee is responsible for administering the assets or properties of the trust under the terms of the trust documents. It is mostly a three-party financial arrangement-
Trustor: The person who creates the trust and names a trustee to control the assets.
Trustee: The person who manages the property or the assets in the trust and administers the trust using the terms of the trust.
Beneficiary: Beneficiary can be one or more than one and they benefit from the trust agreement. They will be given the content of the trust by the trustee according to the terms and conditions mentioned by the trustor.
So, now that you know what a trustee does, let us tell you how a Trust Administration Attorney In Lancaster can help you manage a trust.
Assets are held in trust over LIfetime and transferred to beneficiaries upon trustee’s death. This arrangement is mostly made by the trustor so that the beneficiary can benefit from the assets in a better way. For this, they hire a responsible middleman who is the trustee.
-Administering the trust according to its terms and conditions
-Investing trust assets appropriately when required
-Making important decisions, such as when to distribute discretionary funds
-Preparing records, statements and tax returns as required by law
-Making a file and recording important details
-Updating the beneficiaries occasionally about the bank statements, asset details and other records.
Understanding the terms of the trust
If you are a trustee, then you need to understand all the legal terms and conditions of trust so that you can function accordingly. It can be difficult to understand them and that is when the lawyer can come to your rescue. A skilled attorney can help in understand complex terms easily and you can function smoothly. Because if you end up misunderstanding any terms, you will be held personally for those errors and you do not want that.
Comprehend the Law
There are some of the federal and state laws that govern the trust. You should be aware of it and administer the trust accordingly. If you do not do that, you will be held liable personally for the damages.
Avoid any conflict with Beneficiaries
Most of the time the beneficiary is one of the family members or someone you know. This can often land you in an awkward situation when the beneficiary requests money from the trust and you don’t give it to them as you find the reason invalid. In such a situation you may find yourself in an argument with the beneficiary. A good Trust And Estate Planning Attorney can help you in such a situation.
Reinforce Your Position
Sometimes the beneficiaries can get a little insecure and anxious about their inheritance. They may question your intentions and even complain that their inheritance is not getting to them fast enough. They may even try to remove you from the position of trustee and that is when you need to have a lawyer. The qualified Trust And Estate Planning Attorney in Lancaster can help you in such situations, provide legal information, and deal with them on your behalf.
Moving the Trust Process
If you are a trustee for a friend or close family member who has just passed away, it is very overwhelming to take up the responsibility immediately. You may need some need to grieve and get over the shock. In such a situation you can hire a trust administration attorney who will take the burden off your shoulders and take you through the process, explain legal terms once you are ready to take over the position as a trustee.
Hiring an Attorney can be an Additional Expense
Of course, Hiring an Attorney comes with additional charges. Under, the law the lawyer is supposed to get reasonable compensation, however, that differs from place to place. It also depends on the value of the assets. Some trustees charge 1% to 3% of the asset's value. If the beneficiaries are not satisfied, they can challenge the fees and get it reviewed by the court.
Conclusion
If you are facing a hard time as a trustee as legal terms and formalities are hard to understand, then you should hire a Trust Administration Attorney to help you out and make your duties easier or else you may be held liable for any of the errors.
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