If you have created a trust, you have already taken steps to ensure that your financial wishes are executed in the ways you believe they should be. But simply because you have created a trust does not mean that your wishes cannot change. Life events such as marriage, divorce, the birth of children and acquiring additional assets can impact the ways in which you wish to have your financial wishes carried out and respected.
Thankfully, the law recognizes the fact that life events can impact an individual’s intent with respect to trusts. As a result, many trusts can be amended in order to better reflect an individual’s wishes. However, some trusts may only be amended under certain circumstances and must be amended in certain ways. As a result, it is generally important to speak with an attorney experienced in matters related to estate planning about the specifics of the trust you wish to amend and the circumstances inspiring you to amend that trust.
Trusts are usually more complex than wills are. As a result, you cannot simply write in your changes, initial them and expect those actions to be legally enforceable. Trusts are treated differently depending on whether or not they are revocable or irrevocable. In addition, various states treat trusts and the laws surrounding them in different ways.
If you are interested in amending a trust, please speak with an attorney. You have a right to have your trust-related wishes known and to be executed when possible. However, you and your attorney may have to take several legal steps in order to bring your vision to fruition.
Source: Findlaw Law & Daily Life, “Amending Your Trust: 3 Legal Tips to Consider,” Mark Wilson, Oct. 23, 2014