Blog & Resources

Inheritances are often left directly to a person, which is called an “outright” distribution. At other times clients choose to have an inheritance held in Trust. Trusts at their most basic are arrangements where one person, the Grantor, transfers an asset to a second person, the Trustee, to hold for a third person, the Beneficiary. In some Trusts one person wears more than one of these hats, for example when a parent forms a Trust for a child (Beneficiary) and names that child as the Trustee. Trusts can be Irrevocable or Revocable (sometimes called “Living Trusts”), complex or simple and serve a multitude of purposes, but typically if a client wants to give money in trust for a Beneficiary the client will create the Trust in the client’s Will.
What if a client wishes to make a gift in his or her Will into a trust formed by someone else?

This question was addressed in an August 2006 Decree from the Orphans’ Court Division of the Court of Common Please of Chester County in the Estate of Elizabeth Harris, deceased. Thinking this case may have interest to you, I have written the following short article.

An article in the October, 2008 Florida Bar Journal, written by a Florida Estate Planning Lawyer and former member of the Florida Grievance Committee, reported on the most common complaints heard by the Board against Estate Planning and Probate attorneys. This article describes how our firm guards against client complaints by addressing these issues before they arise.

Communication: The article reports that the most common complaint against Estate Planning or Probate lawyers is poor communication. Amazingly, some attorneys and lawyers simply fail to return phone calls. Our firm has a standing policy to return all phone calls within 24 hours. This policy keeps communication going with clients and, in most cases, keeps misunderstandings from arising. Most Probate and Estate Planning related cases affect clients unfamiliar with this area of the law. By answering questions and keeping clients informed we have built up an excellent practice. Satisfied estate planning clients in turn refer us to friends and family for other Estate Planning and Probate cases.

A common question we receive from potential clients is, “What happens to my things if I die without a Will?” This is usually followed by the question, “If I die without a Will, doesn’t everything just pass to my wife/husband?” or by the question, “Does the State get all my things if I die without a Will?”

A common question we receive from potential clients is, “What happens to my things if I die without a Will?” This is usually followed by the question, “If I die without a Will, doesn’t everything just pass to my wife/husband?” or by the question, “Does the Commonwealth get all my things if I die without a Will?”