A Florida revocable living trust is an estate planning document that functions a lot like a will. Assets are placed into trust, and at the death of the person who made the trust, the trust assets are distributed to beneficiaries in the manner described by the trust instrument.
During the lifetime of the person who creates the trust, that person has complete control over all trust assets. Indeed, as the name implies, a revocable living trust can be revoked. That means that the person who makes the trust can take back everything in the trust at any point until death, as long as that person is not incapacitated.
Although revocable living trusts are often called a “will substitute,” a will is almost always still used in conjunction with the living trust. The will used in conjunction is called a “pour over will” and exists mostly to move into the trust any assets still outside of the trust.
Whether you should use a revocable living trust depends on your individual circumstances. There are numerous advantages and disadvantages of using a revocable living trust, so a well-considered estate plan will avoid “one size fits all” solutions and instead be designed around your individual needs.
PTM Trust and Estate Law
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Gainesville, FL 32607
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We are happy to meet with any of our clients in our office located in Gainesville, FL. The office is found off of Tower Road. Please make an appointment for your visit.
We are happy to meet with you either by phone or over zoom if you are not in the Gainesville area. Revocable Living Trusts do not require in person conversations with a law firm; we represent clients from all across the state of Florida.
In Florida, a revocable living trust must be executed with all the formalities of a will. In other words, the trust document must be signed by the trust creator in the presence of two witnesses who must also sign in the presence of the trust creator and in the presence of each other. It is also wise to have the document notarized.
A Florida trust attorney is a lawyer who practices law in Florida, focusing on the law surrounding trusts. Often this lawyer will be an estate planner, as estate planning frequently involves the use of trusts. Trusts attorneys can help you draft a trust, administer a trust, or litigate a trust. This means that trusts attorneys are often sought out by both trustees and trust beneficiaries. In either case, you want a trust attorney that knows trust law well.
We take a lot of pride in knowing the Florida trust law. We are in the process of doing a deep dive into the Florida Trust Code, providing legal commentary for other trust lawyers to read and engage with. We sometimes get calls from other lawyers who ran across our articles, and it always brings us joy to know that other professionals are reading our work.
After someone dies, all assets placed into the decedent’s living trust continue to be in trust. Usually, a new trustee will need to be appointed after the death of the decedent. The new trustee is called a “successor trustee” and manages the trust assets according to the terms of the trust instrument. The successor trustee takes over the trust without the involvement of the probate court.
More often than not, a trustee will oversee distributions to trust beneficiaries. These distributions may be immediate or they may be made over time, depending on how the trust is drafted. The trustee will be required to follow both the terms of the trust and the provisions of the Florida Trust Code.
We get a lot of calls from successor trustees, and typically that means that the decedent did something right by setting up a means to avoid probate. But you need to make sure that the trust is drafted well. A trust instrument needs to comply with the law and with the intent of the person creating the trust. We work hard to make sure every trust we draft accomplishes both of those goals.
No, a revocable living trust does not need its own tax identification number as long as the person who made the trust is still alive and serves as trustee. All the taxable income and losses of the living trust will be attributed to the person who made the trust.
However, after the trust creator dies, the revocable living trust becomes irrevocable and the new trustee will at that point need to obtain a tax id for the trust.
No, as long as the trust was properly executed under the stated laws in which it was created, you likely do not need to create a new living trust. Florida recognizes living trusts created in another state when properly created and executed under that state’s laws. Thus, if you are moving to Florida, you do not necessarily have to create a new living trust in order for that trust to enforced under Florida law.
There is no limit on how many living trusts you can have. You could legally create thousands of living trusts if you wanted to. That being said, most people only need one.
It used to be commonplace for estate planners to advise married clients to create at least two trusts in order to avoid estate taxes. The second trust was called a “bypass trust.” However, the law has since changed, eliminating the need to create a bypass trust most of the time.
Typically, a living trust expires whenever the declaration of trust says the trust expires. In other words, the trust itself determines the answer to this question. However, no matter what the trust says, in Florida a trust cannot exist for longer than 360 years.
No, a living trust does not need to be notarized in Florida to be valid. However, in some circumstances a certificate of trust will need to be recorded, which requires that the certificate be notarized. However, this is typically only a concern when real estate is moved into the trust.
The best way to get a living trust is to visit a Gainesville trust attorney. If you are looking for a trust attorney, you might consider typing “trust attorney near me” into a search engine. Look for a lawyer the focusses on trust as a primary practice area.
Or you can just give Blakely Moore a call. He is a double gator that calls Gainesville home. He’s proud to be your Hogtown lawyer.
PTM Trust and Estate Law is happy to answer your questions about revocable living trusts. Please call 352-554-5576 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation. If you do not live near Gainesville, then we will be happy to schedule a free phone meeting instead. We help clients all throughout the state of Florida.
