Trustees Not Easily Released from Liability

Trustees in Michigan can seek release for wrongdoing or just to prevent allegation of wrongdoing. See MCL 700.7909, which is part of the Michigan Trust Code; it says so. The problem is, without explicit instruction in a trust I don’t know for sure the circumstances under which a beneficiary’s release is valid. Here’s what I do know:

MCL 700.7821(3)(a) and (b) give two examples of when a release given to a trustee will not be valid. First, if its improperly induced by the trustee. Second, if the beneficiary didn’t know a material fact relating to a trustee’s breach of duty.

An Estate Plan Young Parents CAN Afford

Even if something happens to you, it’s still your job to provide for your children.

Obviously, you can’t be replaced–but your income can.

If you have young children, there’s a good chance you also have things like student loans, a mortgage, maybe a car payment, and even a credit card. On top of that, I know it’s hard to plan for your own demise. The good news is that about $20 per month can get a healthy 30-year-old female $500,000 in life insurance. (Men, at any age, have to pay a little more.)

Applying this life insurance to a trust you create in your will can make sure your children are taken care of,

Do I Need a Trust?

Few people need a trust created during their lifetime, but a lot of people want one. I think those companies that used to book the Holiday Inn and buy people dinner in order to sell them trusts had something to do with it. (I was contacted by one of those companies asking if I’d prepare fill-in-the-blank trusts for them so I know they’re still around).

In my humble opinion, if you can’t state the reason for wanting to set up a trust in a sentence, you have to question why you want one. Here are some examples I came up with off the top of my head:

Do I Need a Will?

You’ll think I’m crazy but you already have one. It may not be one you want. Don’t believe me? Click here to go the Michigan legislature’s website to read it. Alright, it’s not technically a “Will” but it tells you what will happen if you don’t decide for yourself—in writing.

You can probably guess the rules: it’s all in probate court, some (not a whole lot of) money and property may be set aside if you have a spouse and children (more if you have minor children), and the rest is available to creditors if you have any.

Don’t Fill in the Blanks

My first experience with fill-in-the-blank legal forms was in law school. I was an intern at the 60+/Elder Law Clinic. An elderly gentlemen presented me with a “trust” for which he had paid about $4,000. The “trust” was about 8 pages of fill-in-the-blank forms (and some of the blanks still weren’t filled in). Obviously, someone had taken advantage of him.

I admit this fill-in-the-blank trust could have worked for the man. If what was on the forms already fit his needs, if he prepared a deed for his home, and if he transferred all of his other assets,