Title: Can Probate Be Avoided?
1Can Probate
Be Avoided?
2Estate Planning and Probate
3Before we examine probate avoidance, let's look
at probate itself
4PROBATE can be defined as the legal process of
estate administration
5When you use a will to direct the transfer of
your personal property, the administration of
the estate is supervised by the probate court
6Probate Pitfalls
7Probate provides certain protections, but there
are three primary pitfalls
8For one thing, probate is time-consuming
9Secondly, probate can be expensive
10Lastly, probate is a public proceeding
11Anyone could find out what took place during the
process
12AVOIDING PROBATE
13Now, let's get into probate avoidance
14It is indeed possible to arrange for asset
transfers outside of probate
15There are a number of different ways of
accomplishing this objective
16Flawed Solutions
17There are some simple but flawed probate
avoidance solutions
18These would include payable on death accounts and
joint tenancy
19Assets can be transferred outside of probate
using these methods
20However, unintended negative consequences can
arise
21Revocable Living Trusts
22A very solid and reliable way to transfer assets
outside of probate is through the creation of a
REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST
Revocable Living Trusts
23After you pass away, the trustee that you choose
distributes assets to the beneficiaries
24These distributions are not subject to the
probate process
25Revocable living trusts enable fast and efficient
asset transfers outside of probate
26Another part of the appeal is the fact that you
retain control of the assets that are in the
trust while you are living
27You can change the terms or revoke the trust
entirely if you choose to do so
28Cincinnati Estate Planning Consultation
29This presentation should have provided you with
some valuable but basic information
30If you would like to discuss probate avoidance
strategies with a licensed attorney contact our
firm to schedule a free consultation
31(513) 721-1513
Click to visit ZimmerLawFirm.com