MY AUGUST ESTATE PLANNING LAW REPORT IS ABOUT HOW TO LEAVE THINGS TO PEOPLE WITHOUT USING A WILL

One of the most commonly used vehicles for non-testamentary estate planning (that’s a term I just made up) is the revocable (“living”) trust.  Non-testamentary estate planning refers to any estate planning method that doesn’t rely on a will.  Perhaps a better term (one that I didn’t make up) is non-probate estate planning.  That includes any method of transferring assets owned by a deceased individual outside of an estate administration (that’s what’s commonly referred to as “probate”).
The revocable trust is widely used as a vehicle for non-probate estate planning, but it doesn’t actually allow you to avoid probate unless it’s “funded.”  What is “funding” a trust?  And what are some other ways to leave things to people without using a will, or in other words, what are some other methods of non-testamentary estate planning?  Find out by reading my Estate Planning Law Report for August, 2018, now available for your enjoyment, and hopefully edification, in the publications section of deconcinimcdonald.com.  It’s also linked on the home page.