One of the critical tasks that an estate plan accomplishes is ensuring that your assets are passed down to your loved ones in accordance with your wishes. This is sometimes done through a will, but there’s another option that provides you with considerable control and your beneficiaries with several benefits.
This option is a trust, some of which are classified as irrevocable. An irrevocable trust is one that you can’t change once you establish and fund it, unless you can get the permission of the court or the beneficiaries. The assets in the trust move under the control of the trustee.
Permanency has benefits
Irrevocable trusts protect the assets in the trust by keeping them away from creditors. Assets in the trust can’t be claimed to satisfy judgments against you or other debts. This means your loved ones will be able to enjoy their full inheritance from the trust.
Another benefit of an irrevocable trust is that the assets within the trust are removed from the estate. This can reduce the tax liability for the estate, which is particularly important in larger estates.
All trusts, whether they’re revocable or irrevocable, give the beneficiaries the benefit of privacy. Trusts bypass the probate process, so the contents of the trust don’t become part of the public court record.
With all of this said, it’s important to remember that trusts are only effective if they’re established properly. It may behoove you to work with someone who’s familiar with the estate planning process so they can ensure everything is set up in the most effective way to relay your wishes.