Estate Planning Newsletter

• Irrevocable Funeral Trusts and Medicaid Eligibility for Long-Term Care
  If you are concerned that the cost of skilled nursing care or other long-term care will exhaust your savings and saddle your heirs with your funeral and burial expenses, then you may want to consider adding an Irrevocable Funeral Trust... Read more.
• Distributing the Assets of Missing Persons
  When an individual dies, their estate must be administered and distributed according to their previously established estate plan (if the decedent executed an estate plan prior to their death) or state intestate succession laws (if the... Read more.
• Special Needs Trusts Preserve Public Benefits for the Disabled
  Some government statistics estimate that between 15% and 20% of all Americans have some form of disability. It is also estimated that the majority of disabled persons will need to avail themselves of public assistance to help pay the... Read more.
• Estate Tax Valuation Methods for Securities
  In 2001, Congress passed legislation incrementally increasing the amount exempt from federal estate taxes and completely eliminating estate taxes in the year 2010. However, the legislation contains a “sunset” provision... Read more.

• Charles Chrin’s son fires back in legal dispute with late father’s fourth wife
• Before the death of a spouse, here’s how to prepare a financial plan for living alone
• 6 Reasons Why You Need An Estate Plan
• Two Key Estate-Planning Documents You Need
• How To Turn Your Estate Plan Into A Legacy Plan

Trusts & Charity

It is possible to set up a trust for charitable purposes. Charitable trusts are quite common, but certain requirements must be met.

Purpose of a Charitable Gift

Reasons for charitable gifts funded through a trust include the desire to:

• Help relieve poverty
• Help the elderly
• Advance a religion
• Benefit educational establishments
• Aid with the construction or maintenance of public property (such as a park)
• Prevent animal cruelty

How Are Beneficiaries Designated?

In general, beneficiaries of charitable gifts must have a broader scope:

• Cannot be specifically named people
• Can be a class of persons
• May be institutions

In some cases, a charitable gift may be given to a non-charitable organization. However, there must be a charitable intent; otherwise the trust is invalid as a charitable trust.

Supervision & Regulation

In some states, the office of the Attorney General oversees charitable trust activity. The Attorney General’s duties in this regard include:

• Maintaining a register of charitable corporations, trustees, and trusts
• Investigating transactions relating to charitable trusts
• Enforcing charitable trusts
• Recovering property on behalf of a charitable trust

Cy Pres Doctrine

If your charitable wishes cannot be fulfilled for some reason, the appropriate court will attempt to carry out your wishes by giving the property to an organization with a related charitable purpose. For example, a charitable trust set up to eradicate polio may instead be given to aid a pediatric foundation.

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