Alexandria, LA Trust Lawyer

At Theus Law Offices, a trust lawyer Alexandria LA residents highly recommend, we specialize in designing and customizing estate plans for individuals and families in our community.  We design custom estate plans to protect and simplify the transfer of assets to your loved ones who will later benefit from your estate.  A Last Will and Testament is one building block in a comprehensive estate plan, but does not provide any lifetime asset protection, or avoid nursing home poverty, or the cost and administrative burden of probate.  If you wish to avoid probate, protect assets from lawsuits or the potentially crushing costs of long-term care, you may wish to speak with an Alexandria, LA trust lawyer.  

Understanding Trusts
A “trust” is a flexible legal tool used in many different scenarios by both wealthy and non-wealthy individuals.  Trusts can serve as a mechanism to quickly and conveniently pass legacies to future generations (as a “will substitute” that bypasses probate), to direct charitable planning, asset protection planning, incapacity planning, and as a tool to minimize potential family disputes, as well as protect children from unforeseeable claims and future failed marriages.  Trusts are not just for the wealthy and can benefit most families, individuals and even businesses.  If you are interested in learning more about trusts, you should consider speaking with an experienced Alexandria, LA trust lawyer from Theus Law Offices about how this estate planning tool may benefit you and your family.   

Trust Basics
A trust is a private legal document, which provides who will manage your assets, who will benefit from your estate, and when legacies will be distributed.  A “living trust” is a trust that you create while you are alive, which may be revocable or irrevocable.  A “settlor” or “grantor” is the person who creates the trust.  The “trustee” is the person appointed to manage and distribute trust assets.  A “beneficiary” is the person designated in the trust agreement that will receive assets from the trust.  Settlors can be both the beneficiary and trustee of their own trust.  

Benefits of a Living Trust
A living trust is designed to help circumvent the complex and time-consuming process of probate, as well as place conditions on how wealth is passed down.  A trust can also have tax benefits.  A significant purpose of the living trust is to ensure that your assets are passed on to beneficiaries smoothly and efficiently. There is no “one-size-fits-all” rule, so if you are interested in trust planning, an experienced trust lawyer with Theus Law Offices, in Alexandria LA, can help you explore your legal options.  

The potential benefits of creating a living trust are:

• Living trusts can help minimize the burden of taxes
• Living trusts can avoid probate, thus saving your beneficiaries the burden of legal proceedings related to your estate
• Living trusts provide more control over how your assets will be distributed and utilized
• Living trusts ensure that your affairs remain private, contrary to a probated estate which becomes public record

Do You Need a Living Trust?
If you are concerned about protecting assets, privacy, avoiding probate, or simply do not have an estate plan, then creating a living trust may be appropriate for you. However, a living trust is not a magic elixir and is not always necessary or appropriate.  To learn whether a living trust should be an essential component of your estate plan, contact Theus Law Offices, in Alexandria, Louisiana, for a free consultation with one of our trust lawyers.  

Contact Theus Law Offices Today
Estate planning is complicated and requires individualized, customized planning for each individual.  As Living Trust attorneys, we stand ready to assist you in creating an effective estate plan that will protect everything you own and everyone you love.  Contact our office to schedule a free consultation with a knowledgeable and experienced trust lawyer in Alexandria LA at Theus Law Offices!