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END-OF-LIFE
ISSUES
Back across town, Jim suspects that his mother and stepfather instructions for a trustee to follow in handling your assets during
didn’t understand that following the purchase of the living trust, your life and who takes your assets on your death. These trusts are
they had to sign a deed transferring the farm and any other assets often called “living trusts.” However, many people who purchase
to the living trust in order to assure that Jim would inherit the living trusts don’t understand that, to avoid probate, all of their as-
property upon their death. As a result of failing to properly fund sets – their house, cars, bank accounts, investment accounts, boat,
the trust they signed, the farm will pass by Texas law partly to Jim motor home, etc. – must be owned by trustee of the trust. And
and partly to his stepfather’s eight children. when they purchase new assets, such as a vacation home, it too
must be purchased and titled in the trust. Living trusts can be ad-
COUNTY JUDGES REVIEW WILLS vantageous but if the sole purpose of purchasing a living trust is to
Under Texas law, a person has the right to decide how their prop- avoid probate, the individual should reconsider. Probate in Texas
is very simple, straightforward and generally inexpensive. Purchas-
erty passes at death. An estate plan found in a will can be simple ing and properly maintaining a living trust could be difficult, and
but it must be in writing, signed by the individual and witnessed if not properly maintained, could result in co-owning the farm with
by two persons who are not beneficiaries of the estate plan. Then eight stepbrothers and stepsisters.
upon death, the will is reviewed by a county judge, and if properly
worded and executed, the will is admitted to probate, and the Patricia Flora Sitchler is a certified elder law attor-
wishes of the testator (person who signed the will) must be followed ney and assists families in planning for disabled indi-
as long as nothing in the will violates any law (e.g., you cannot leave viduals. She maintains offices in San Antonio as a
firearms to persons who are convicted felons). shareholder in the firm Schoenbaum, Curphy & Scan-
lan, P.C.
Another way to write out an estate plan is to transfer all of your
assets to a trustee of a trust. A trust is nothing more than a set of
visit us at www.bcms.org 17
