Estate Planning – Navigating the Trust Waters
Hey, Oklahoma medical marijuana licensed businesses. I’m Katrina Lucas, and I’m a Tulsa business attorney with Wirth Law Office.
I’m here to talk to you about estate planning and whether you need—or do not need—a trust for any end-of-life planning for your assets.
What is a Trust and How Does it Work?
First, let’s go over what a trust is. A trust is a legal entity that is recognized by the state as an owner of property and has the ability to manage that property and those assets while you’re alive or after your death. A trust is used for the protection of assets. A trust is used to avoid probate. A trust is the preferred method that an attorney will recommend when doing estate planning.
However, a trust is not a solution that solves every problem. There are ways for trust assets to be taken, but they are extreme. The State of Oklahoma is very deferential to having a trust and to the assets within that trust, even when you still have control of that trust or when it’s a revocable trust.
The Details of a Trust Document
A trust can be a 10-page document or an 80-page document. The breadth and depth of the document depend on what powers are granted, what rights people have, what your trustee can and cannot do, what you can and cannot do, what options exist, how insurance or benefits can be paid, and how your heirs or the people you want to receive money from your trust can be paid—and when. Those details can dictate how long the trust document is.
There are sections of a trust that may provide for additional protections, allowing it to last longer or for an attorney to change or modify language—even when it’s supposed to be unmodifiable—due to changes in the law. You need to go to a good trust and estate planning attorney for those details.
Ready to Discuss Your Trust Needs?
If you have any other questions about a trust, or would like to set one up with Wirth Law Office, give me a call here. I’m happy to answer questions and discuss all of the nuances of a trust with you—and I do love working with estate planning.
This is Katrina Lucas, a Oklahoma cannabis business attorney with Wirth Law Office in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Stay safe, stay legal. Call us at (918) 932-2879 to schedule a consultation.