The Tax Law Office of David W. Klasing as your Wills and Trusts Firm
Having a valid will and appropriate trusts in place is essential to avoiding excessive estate taxes, protecting your assets from probate and taking control over the distribution of your estate after you pass. There are numerous varieties of wills and trusts available to the Tax Law Office of David W. Klasing to choose from as the firm seeks the optimal method to protect your assets, legacy and values and provide for your family upon your passing.
You have spent the majority of your life working, striving, saving and investing to accumulate your wealth. You owe it to yourself and your family to implement a plan to protect the wealth that you have accumulated. Let the Law Office of David W. Klasing implement an effective estate plan and you and your family will be in a position to avoid losing a significant portion of your estate to probate and estate taxes. With David W. Klasing's unique mix of educational and working experience including being a California licensed Attorney & CPA and possessing a master's degree in taxation specialized in the estate and gift arena, Dave is highly qualified to help you make informed estate planning decisions including the optimal selection of the appropriate will and effective trusts for your particular set of circumstances.
Will Defined
A Will is a legally enforceable declaration of how the declarant wishes his or her possessions to be disposed of after his or her death.
Trust Defined
A trust is a fiduciary relationship with respect to specific property wherein a trustee holds legal title subject to enforceable equitable rights of a beneficiary as designated in the trust document. Title to assets placed in the trust is legally bifurcated in to legal title held by the trustee and beneficial title, which is held by the trust beneficiaries.
The Trustee is legally responsible for managing the Trust assets, can only use the assets and earnings from invested Trust property for the benefit of the named beneficiaries of the Trust, and can never manipulate the trust for his or her own profit.
Beneficiaries of a trust derive rights in the assets and earnings on trust assets solely as directed by the written Trust provisions.
Living Trust
Living Trusts are the modern replacement of the traditional "will." A Living Trust distributes your estate at death just like a traditional will, but unlike the traditional will, with a living trust your estate is in not run through the probate courts. Probating an estate is often costly, time consuming (1-2 years), and irritating for your heirs.
Living trusts are effectively used to double the estate tax exemption amount and thus reduce or eliminate estate taxes for married couples by the inclusion of a formula clause. A formula clause takes advantage of the unlimited spousal deduction allowed under the internal revenue code. When the first married individual dies, the trust pays out to the beneficiaries named in the living trust directly, or optionally, an "exemption trust" can be funded up to the amount of the total unified credit, which is currently $3,500,000. The surviving spouse is often given the right to the income earned by the assets funded to the exemption trust for life with the trust assets being distributed according to the terms of the exemption trust at his / her death. Without the use of a formula clause, the unified credit on the first spouse to die would be wasted. The remaining amount of the estate (after the unified credit is exhausted) is conveyed to the surviving spouse. Thus, when the first spouse dies, no estate tax is owed. When the second spouse dies, the remaining estate is subject to the surviving spouses' unified credit, with any excess being subject to the estate tax.
Pour Over Will
A Pour Over Will takes your assets that are not already titled in the name of your living trust at the time of your death and pours them into your living trust. Household items and other items that ordinarily do not carry a title, and omitted or overlooked assets that carry a title are distributed to your beneficiaries according to the terms of living trust via the pour over provision in your will. By assigning these assets to the Living Trust, probate is avoided along with the delay and expense of subjecting your assets to probate.
Wills and Trusts Services Offered
- Planning and drafting wills
- Revocable and irrevocable trusts
- Trusts for minors
- Tax exemption trusts
- Credit shelter trusts
- AB trusts
- Q-DOT trusts
- Credit shelter bypass trusts
- Charitable remainder trusts
- Trusts for pets
- Family trusts
- Special needs trusts
- Charitable remainder trusts
- Trust Tax Return Preparation
- Charitable Remainder Trust Tax Returns and Related Administration
- Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts
- A GRIT (Grantor Retained Income Trust), a GRUT (Grantor Retained UniTrust),
- GRAT (Grantor Retained Annuity Trust)
- A QPRT (Qualified Personal Residence Trust)
- Revocable / Irrevocable Trusts
- Probating of wills
- Independent estate administration
- Heirship determinations
- Trust administration
- Asset Splits Between Sub-Trusts
- Preparation of Documents to Transfer Title to Assets
- Preparation of Required Notification to Heirs and Beneficiaries
- California Probate Code Initial Notification Requirements
- Final Accounting to Beneficiaries and Assistance with Distributions
- Fiduciary Accounting Under the Principal and Income Act for Trusts
- IDGT's (Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts)
- SCIN's (Self Canceling Installment Notes)
- Probate Court-Approved Accounting Format for Trusts
- Qualified Personal Residence trusts (known as a "QPRT")
- Generation-skipping trusts and Family Dynasty Trusts
- Life insurance trusts (known as an "ILIT")
Contact my office online or call 714-908-4467 or toll free 866-974-8429 to schedule a free half hour consultation to discuss your Wills and Trusts issues and how I can be of assistance. When you call, you will speak directly to me, not a paralegal or assistant, to get the experienced answers you need.