When you’re in the process of speaking with an Arizona estate lawyer he or she may talk to about not only preparing your last will and testament but also a living trust as well. These documents, while they do go hand-in-hand, perform different purposes.

A living trust is a document crafted to place your assets into a trust that will become effective at the time the trust is completed. Your assets will be managed by the trust, while you are still alive. You will choose a trustee who will be responsible for the management of your assets. The living trust document that is drawn up will specify how your assets will be divided up upon your death. You can revoke a living trust at any time and you can also modify it and change trustees at any point during your lifetime. Your living trust is a document that can be changed and shifted during your lifetime to manage any new assets that may come into your possession. You will need to have the living will signed and notarized.

A will is the legal document in which you list your assets and make provisions for its distribution upon your death. Unlike a living trust, a will only becomes effective upon your demise and the individual/s you have chosen as executors do not gain control of your property until you’re deceased. As with a living will, you can make adjustments to both the property distribution and the executor of your estate at any point during your life. The will, too, must be signed and notarized.

While these documents do share some commonalities, they are separate, unique documents and you can’t draw up one in the hopes that it can perform double duty. The documents need to be drawn up separately. Your will has to be filed with the court in order for it to be probated upon your death and at this time, the provisions and assets included in your will become a public document. With a living trust, the information contained within it is a private document, is not filed with the court, and the information does not become public knowledge.

If you have children who will need provisions made for their guardianship after your death, these provisions need to be stipulated in a will, not a living trust. Also, it is in the will where you will make note of your last wishes as it relates to your burial and even specific instructions for your funeral arrangements – a living trust does not have provisions for these instructions.

Each document, even though it serves a unique purpose, has advantages. The advantage of making a will includes the fact that you may need to provide guardianship for minor children. Remember, too if you die without having drawn up a will, your family will have to wait for your property to go through probate and your assets may not end up divided the way you initially wished.

With a living trust, the advantage is that information on your assets and property remain private. A living trust also lets your heirs avoid the fees of probate court and reduces their financial burden. Additionally, with a living trust the individual drawing it up can appoint him or herself as the trustee so he can make decisions on the assets.

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