With the passing of a loved one comes a flood of emotions. Grief, anxiety, and even stress are among them – particularly if you’ve been made the trustee of the deceased’s estate.
If you’ve been tasked with this responsibility, you may wonder “do I need a trust attorney for legal help with trust administration?”
Many individuals choose to use a living trust attorney to create a trust that streamlines the distribution of a person’s assets after their passing. However administering a trust can still be a complex and lengthy process. Trustees have legal obligations, and there is always the chance that other family members may challenge the distribution of assets, making the process more difficult.
Rather than try to navigate the administration of a trust on your own, the compassionate guidance of an experienced probate and trust attorney like Hays Firm can make a world of difference.
Hays Firm is a family trust administration attorney, with a reputation for serving Chicago area families with the highest quality, personalized legal counsel since 2008.
Whether you’re looking for legal help with trust administration, or in need of representation fighting a trust dispute, Hays Firm is here to give you the support you need.
In this blog, Hays Firm will dive into the trust administration process, answering your essential questions so you can decide if you need a attorney to help you through the administration process.
A Look at the Trust Administration Process
Trust administration is the process of distributing assets held in a trust after the trust’s creator, known as the grantor or settlor, has passed away.
The most common form of trust is a revocable living trust. It shares the same goal as a final will and testament – to distribute the grantor’s assets – but differs significantly in how it achieves this.
With a living trust, the grantor’s assets are titled into the trust during their lifetime. The grantor typically retains full control and use of their assets as the initial trustee. This re-titling is significant, as it is what allows the estate to bypass the lengthy public process of probate, which a will is subjected to.
During the creation of a trust, a trustee is named – this is the person responsible for managing and distributing the assets held in the trust according to the wishes of the grantor after their passing. In the case of a revocable living trust, the grantor is the initial trustee until their passing, or incapacitation. This is when the successor trustee steps in to manage the trust.
A living trust is often beneficial when there are significant assets at stake, such as real estate holdings, large financial portfolios, stock holdings, even entire companies – precisely because the living trust is designed to bypass the probate process.
While this structure theoretically makes administration of a trust simpler than that of a will, it is still a complex legal process. It isn’t as simple as merely following the instructions laid out in the trust document, as there are strict legal requirements the trustee must comply with.
Without the help of a trust administration process lawyer, it can be difficult to fully understand the precise legal steps and procedures that must be followed under the Illinois Trust Code. It can also be challenging to fully understand a trustee’s fiduciary responsibilities and navigate the hidden challenges that can arise.
A Trustee’s Responsibilities
As the trustee, there are some significant responsibilities that come with managing the trust. These include:
- Identifying and Valuing Trust Assets: The trustee must locate and assign an accurate value to all the assets titled to the trust – even those that are not listed in the trust document, but should have been. This involves obtaining appraisals for real estate, business interests and other complex assets. Accurately valuing these assets is essential for fair distribution, and for large estates, can become extremely complex.
- Settling Debts: The trustee is responsible for paying off all remaining debts from the estate (using the estate’s money), including taxes. This must be done before any remaining assets can be distributed to beneficiaries.
- Fulfilling Fiduciary Duties: A trustee must act solely in the best interest of the beneficiaries, and in accordance with the wishes of the estate. They have an obligation to maintain accurate records and accounting of all trust assets, income, expenses and distributions. This provides accountability to beneficiaries and ensures accurate tax filings.
- Personal Liability: If mistakes are made during the trust administration process, the responsibility is that of the trustee, making you vulnerable to legal action from unsatisfied beneficiaries.
Understanding the full scope of the trustee’s fiduciary duties and responsibilities is paramount for successfully navigating the trust administration process. Because this is not something that the average person has an innate knowledge of, seeking guidance from an experienced trust administration attorney will minimize your own personal risk and ensure that the estate is tended to appropriately.
Common Challenges of Handling the Trust Administration Process Yourself
While the trust administration process is fairly straightforward, each circumstance is unique and will present its own challenges. Generally speaking, the larger the estate and the more valuable the assets at play, the more likely it is that you will benefit from engaging with a trust administration attorney.
Consider some of these situations which can complicate the trust administration process:
Complexities of the Trust Document
The complexity of the trust document isn’t just about how many assets there are to distribute, although that certainly plays a part. Trust documents may contain specific conditions for distributions or certain assets, such as age-based payouts (common when the beneficiaries are currently of a young age). Ambiguous language in the trust document can also lead to misunderstandings and disputes, which require legal assistance to ultimately sort out.
Handling Diverse, High Value Assets
If a trust holds multiple high value assets, such as real estate properties in multiple states, diverse investment portfolios, or ownership stakes in businesses, a trust administration attorney may be required to handle the distribution.
Facing Disputes from Beneficiaries
While a trust is designed to simplify the distribution of assets, unhappy beneficiaries can disrupt those plans. Beneficiaries can challenge the legitimacy of a trust, dispute your valuation of its assets, and even how those assets are to be distributed. Involving a family trust administration attorney not only brings their legal experience to the table, but acts as an impartial mediator to resolve these disputes fairly.
Determining Tax Implications
There are significant tax implications for both the estate and its beneficiaries. These include estate taxes, income taxes on trust assets, and capital gains taxes. A lawyer skilled in the trust administration process can help to minimize tax liabilities and ensure proper accounting and filings.
Lack of Time and Knowledge
Most trustees are family members of the deceased, and are already grieving the loss of their loved one. In addition to their jobs, and other responsibilities, administering a trust requires an investment of time, especially when one is unfamiliar with the process. Seeking legal help for trust administration can lighten this burden, and ensure the trust is administered correctly.
The Value of Working With a Trust Administration Attorney Like Hays Firm
We’ve seen the challenges of administering a trust on your own, but what value does working with a trust administration attorney bring?
By working with a family trust administration attorney such as Hays Firm you get vital guidance and representation, breaking down a daunting task into a manageable process.
At Hays Firm, we help our clients with:
Expert Legal Interpretation of Trust Documents
At Hays Firm, our trust administration legal services will closely review trust documents to ensure that the deceased’s wishes are honored accurately, and in accordance with Illinois law. Our legal experts will ensure that there are no legal missteps and prepare the estate for any challenges that may arise.
Navigating Legal and Tax Obligations
Estates with high value assets can be difficult to administer, particularly with regard to estate tax laws. Our team is highly knowledgeable on Illinois estate tax laws and the Illinois Trust Code. Our team will help you provide detailed accounting information to trust beneficiaries, and demonstrate that you have handled your fiduciary duties responsible.
Impartial Dispute Resolution
Conflicts among beneficiaries are common, especially in estates with significant high value assets. Our attorneys act as mediators between invested parties, helping to keep the peace and work towards amicable and fair resolutions.
Safeguarding Personal Liability
As trustees, you have a fiduciary duty to follow through with the wishes of the grantor and work in the best interest of the beneficiaries. We will guide you through the trust administration process, ensuring that every procedure is followed correctly and transparently. Our expertise shields you from personal liability or errors or omissions that could result in claims against you.
Streamlining the Process and Providing Peace of Mind
During an already emotional time, Hays Firm can ease the burden that administering an estate carries. We can handle all the paperwork, ensure deadlines are met, beneficiaries are notified, and give you the peace of mind that your loved one’s estate is administered properly and in accordance with their wishes.
While it is not a formal requirement to work with a trust administration attorney, it’s clear that seeking legal help for trust administration provides significant benefits, and takes the pressure off of a trustee during an already emotional time.
And if you’re still on the fence about whether or not to work with a trust and estate administration lawyer, consider this:
The legal fees for a probate and trust attorney are generally paid for by the estate itself.
This is considered a reasonable and necessary expense of administering the trust, and ensures that the trustee can properly fulfill their duties to both the trust and its beneficiaries.
In Need of Legal Help For Trust Administration In Chicago? Contact Hays Firm
Navigating the trust administration process without a skilled lawyer on your side is possible, but it can leave you vulnerable to mistakes, leave you defending against challenges on your own, or worse, personally liable for errors.
By seeking legal help for trust administration you’ll get accurate and knowledgeable advice throughout the entire process, easing the stress of managing the distribution of assets yourself. .
At Hays Firm, we’ve served the Chicago area as probate and trust attorneys since 2008. We’ve helped countless families like yours navigate the complexities of family trust administration, with our core values of honesty, integrity, excellence, service and respect.
We have the knowledge and experience to make the trust administration process smooth and friction free, while giving you the peace of mind that your loved ones assets are distributed according to their wishes.
Don’t wait any longer to get professional legal assistance for trust administration.
Contact Hays Firm today for an initial consultation, and let us help you navigate the process with compassion and understanding.
**Disclaimer**
This content of this blog is for general informational purposes only, and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult with a qualified attorney or lawyer for advice specific to your situation.
