Family Trusts + Revocable Living Trusts

A Revocable Living Trust (also known as “Family Trusts”, “Revocable Trusts”, “Living Trusts”) is just one type of the many various types of trusts out there - all with different purposes + goals.  For instance, trusts can help you avoid probate, minimize your exposure to taxes, and maintain control of your property/estate.

Trusts can also help you protect your beneficiaries from lawsuits and provide asset protection to your surviving spouse and/or children.  Forming a living trust is typically the first step in your estate planning.

When people think about estate planning, most think of a Will… However, a living trust is crucial (especially in Nevada, due to Nevada Probate Laws), and can help you avoid probate altogether, as well as help limit costs related to estate administration. From forming a revocable living trust, business planning considerations, to asset protection issues, finding the right estate planning lawyer in Las Vegas can prove to be invaluable! 

At Phillips Ballenger, Las Vegas, Nevada trust attorney Tiffany Ballenger Floyd will work hard to ensure that a comprehensive estate plan helps address all your needs and goals. 

When you form your Nevada Revocable Living Trust, several things are specifically stated within the Trust document:

1. Initial Trustee: You designate the Trustee (usually you – or in the case of a married couple, usually the husband and the wife are the trustees);
2. Successor Trustee(s):  You designate one or more Successor Trustees, which are persons you’ve designated to step into your shoes upon your incapacity/death, so that they may legally handle the trust’s business.
3.  Lifetime Beneficiaries:   You designate the Lifetime Beneficiary(ies).  If you’re not married, you’re usually the trust’s sole lifetime beneficiary.  If you’re married & create a trust jointly with your spouse, both spouses are typically the lifetime beneficiaries.
4.  Who Gets your Stuff - "Death" Beneficiaries:  You specify who inherits your estate after you pass away. These are the “death beneficiaries”. You can additionally state how the beneficiaries receive their inheritance (outright, %’s at certain ages, in an asset-protection trust, etc.)
5. And Much More ... Trusts can do a lot more than this, such as minimize gift & estate taxes, protect beneficiaries with special needs, etc. 

Revocable Living Trust is the Backbone of your Plan... 

Your Living Trust is just one component of a comprehensive estate plan – there are many other “ancillary” documents that should accompany your trust, such as:

• Will - (your “Last Will and Testament”, “Pour-Over Will”)
• Power of Attorney (including Nevada Durable Powers of Attorney for Financial Management, Limited Powers of Attorney)
• Advance Health Care Directives (AKA "Health Care Powers of Attorney",  “Nevada Health Care Power of Attorney”, “Nevada Advance Directive”), including a HIPAA Release.
• Living Wills
• Guardianship Nomination forms for Care + Custody of Minor Children

to name a few...

Nevada trust attorney Tiffany Ballenger Floyd will work hard to ensure that a comprehensive estate plan helps address all your needs and goals, and will walk you through the Funding Process, which is the very important process of transferring your assets into your Trust.

Las Vegas Trust Attorney Tiffany Ballenger Floyd also handles all aspects of updating your trusts & estate plan, including counsel and drafting of:

• Trust Amendments;
• Trust Restatements;
• Will Codicils; and
• Ongoing Trust Funding Advice & Assistance

At Phillips Ballenger, attorney Tiffany Ballenger Floyd personally drafts her Client’s trusts- she doesn’t hand her work off to a paralegal or assistant.  This way, she can ensure that the trust is designed properly for your and your needs. 

Our Planning Process- the PB Law Approach 

After we draft the trust, we can also undertake a detailed review of your estate as a whole- reviewing the appropriate documents for each of your companies/entities, and your other financial holdings.   We meet with you personally to discuss your values, hopes, and planning goals, in order to offer you the best options for your specific situation.  Click here for more information on the various types of advanced estate planning options and other types of trusts, such as Nevada Asset Protection Trusts. 

For a detailed, comprehensive consultation, contact us by email or call us at 702-997-5701.  We look forward to speaking with you soon!

Estate Planning Attorney Serving Las Vegas, Summerlin, Henderson, North Las Vegas, Boulder City, and areas throughout Nevada and California and the US.