Decanting Archives - GP Schoemakers, PLLC

Irrevocable Trust Decanting in 4 Steps

We all need a “do over” from time to time. Life changes, the law changes, and professionals learn to do things in better ways. Change is a fact of life – and the law. Unfortunately, many folks think they’re stuck with an irrevocable trust. After all, if the trust can be revoked, why call it “irrevocable”? Good question. Fortunately, irrevocable trusts can be changed and one way to make that change is to decant the original trust. Decanting is a “do over.” Funds from an existing trust (with less favorable terms) are distributed to a new trust (with more favorable [...]

By Gratia P. Schoemakers, Esq.|2021-09-21T19:42:02+00:00March 5th, 2018|Categories: Estate Planning|Tags: Decanting, Tips, Trust|0 Comments

Escape from a Bad Trust: 5 Strong Reasons to Decant Your Trust

When a bottle of wine is decanted, it’s poured from one container into another. When a trust is decanted, trust assets are poured from an old trust into a new trust with more favorable terms. Why Should a Trust Be Decanted? Trusts are decanted to escape from a bad trust and provide beneficiaries with more favorable trust provisions and benefits. Here are 5 strong reasons to decant your trust: To clarify ambiguities or drafting errors in the trust agreement. As trust beneficiaries die and younger generations become the new heirs, vague provisions or mistakes in the original trust agreement may become [...]

By Gratia P. Schoemakers, Esq.|2021-09-21T19:32:03+00:00March 1st, 2016|Categories: Estate Planning|Tags: Decanting, Mistakes, Trust|0 Comments

What’s Hot in Estate Planning Right Now May Surprise You

Estate planning has truly evolved over the past 20 years. Gone is the uncertainty about federal estate taxes and the absolute requirement for married couples to use complex trusts to minimize these taxes. But also gone is planning for the “traditional” family. In fact, today estate planning is more complicated than ever before. Estate Planning in 1995 Versus 2015 In 1995 the federal estate tax exemption was only $600,000 and the estate tax rate was 55%. Back then it was easy to accumulate a taxable estate by simply owning a home, a few investments and some life insurance. And while [...]

By Gratia P. Schoemakers, Esq.|2021-09-21T19:40:49+00:00August 17th, 2015|Categories: Estate Planning|Tags: Decanting, Tax, Trust|0 Comments

5 Good Reasons to Decant a Trust

Today many estate plans contain irrevocable trusts that will continue for the benefit of a spouse’s lifetime and then for the benefit of several generations. Since these trusts are designed to span multiple decades, it is important that they include trust decanting provisions to address changes in circumstances, beneficiaries, and governing laws. What is Trust Decanting? When a bottle of wine is decanted, it is poured from one container into another. When a trust is “decanted,” the funds from an existing trust are removed and distributed into a new trust that has different and more favorable terms. When Should a [...]

By Gratia P. Schoemakers, Esq.|2021-09-21T19:46:09+00:00January 15th, 2015|Categories: Estate Planning|Tags: Decanting, Trust|0 Comments