Estate planning in Staten Island is not really an easy job to do. You have to pay all these costs, spends hours with an attorney and make tough decisions about your life’s earning and whom it should go to.
Also, the constant lingering thought of your own death or incapacity is not exactly fun. However, you realize it’s a necessity and an entry in your life’s to-do list that needs to be checked off. Without it, the consequences are much harder to deal with.
Trusts are one of the valuable tools used by estate planning lawyers in Brooklyn to help clients protect their assets, decrease tax liability, and ensure their loved ones are cared for.
An irrevocable trust in Staten Island is drafted with the intention of long-term protection and tax benefits. One of the main features that separate irrevocable trusts from their counterparts is the ability to make changes.
Revocable trusts allow grantors to have more room to amend the trust. They can add or remove assets and change the instructions or beneficiaries without asking for permits. Changes can be made until the grantor’s death. An irrevocable trust, on the other hand, is more “final”.
Can an irrevocable trust in Staten Island be revoked?
The knee-jerk answer any estate planning lawyer in Staten Island will give is no!This is because irrevocable trusts are aptly named. They can’t really be revoked or amended once you’ve signed and funded them. Whatever assets you decide to put in the trust, you don’t really have control over it.Despite understanding the nature of an irrevocable trust in Staten Island, it’s quite common for settlers to ask about the revocation. Some common reasons for this reconsideration are the wish to add or change beneficiaries, shifting trustee’s power, or extension of a term.
Out of all the motivators, the main one concern is the settler’s Medicaid qualification. Clients want to limit their assets in the irrevocable trust before the look-back period so they can apply for Medicaid.
Whatever the reason, revocation of an irrevocable trust in Staten Island is not exactly an easy process. In the State of New York, there are ways you can make some changes, but there are several limitations attached.
If one approaches it without any expertise, it will take no time becoming a hassle. To avoid any possible catastrophe, involving an estate planning lawyer in Staten Island is the right move to make.
When can you revoke an irrevocable trust in Staten Island?
In New York, one of the options available for revocation is under the Estates, Powers & Trusts Law Section 7-19(a). This particular code is a saving grace for revocation. However, this applies to trusts that have adult and competent beneficiaries. If you’re revoking your trust, you must have the intention for the revocation in writing. Besides your own signature, you also need to have all involved beneficiaries sign their consent. All signatures are then notarized.The trustee is the recipient of the consent. They relinquish power the assets, transferring them under your name for the time being. You can then make the changes you intended to make.There are a couple of places where revocation under this method is ineffective. The first one when the beneficiary named in the asset is a minor at the time of the revocation or a person with a disability.
The reason is that they’re not considered capable of giving consent with full authority. Your lawyer can help you here. If you can prove that the revocation is not unfavorable to the minor or disabled beneficiary, consent may not be required. Similarly, consent isn’t required of beneficiaries who have passed away, not born yet or predeceased.
Decanting
Under the New York statute, a trust can be modified through a process called decanting. If you consume alcohol, you might be aware of this term. It involves emptying wine, whiskey or another spirit into a completely new bottle.
Just like that, decanting a trust involves pouring assets in an irrevocable trust in Staten Island to another one. The terms are different from the first trust, addressing the modifications you wanted to make.
Keep in mind that not every trust is eligible for decanting. Similarly, you may not be able to change all the terms. Consult your estate planning lawyer for further advice.
The last option grantors have is to requesting judicial modifications through the court. The details involving this procedure can be better understood with the expertise of an attorney.
Last thoughts
With these options available, an irrevocable trust in Staten Island doesn’t have to be set in stone. Revocation might not be a walk in the park, but with the right support, it is approachable.
