Minnesota Pour-Over Will

Estate planning is a complicated process, something very often requiring the help of trained professionals. One reason for the need to rely on experts is the importance of whats at stake. Were talking about a persons possessions and how those get distributed to the people they love the most. Its obviously crucial that gets handled properly. Another reason why the process is complicated is because of some of the terminology involved, which sometimes appears to be intentionally opaque. Unless youre an estate-planning attorney you may not have any idea what some phrases or concepts are or how theyre used in practice.

One example of a bizarre estate-planning phrase is a pour-over will. It sounds important, but is it? If so, what does it do? Do you need one? To learn more about a pour-over will and how it functions, keep reading.

What is a pour-over will?

A pour-over will is the name given to a type of last will and testament that is used in conjunction with certain trusts. The pour-over will is a kind of safety check, ensuring that any assets not captured and assigned to the trust while the grantor is living are transferred into the trust at the time of death. Despite the best of intentions and detailed planning, its often the case that not all assets make their way into whatever trust is established. A pour-over will solves that problem, sweeping up other assets and adding them in when they get forgotten.

How does it work?

A pour-over will functions differently than other kinds of wills. Rather than governing how assets will be distributed to friends and family members, a pour-over will simply says that any assets that have not already been included into an established trust will go there in the event of your death. A pour-over will works by essentially naming your trust as a beneficiary of any property that it does not already hold and that does not already pass directly to another beneficiary.

Probate

Normally, when we think of a trust, we assume that probate is not involved. After all, one of the benefits of creating and using a trust is to skip the hassle and expense of the probate process. Sadly, in the event a pour-over will is used, probate will likely be required. The reason is that the pour-over will deals with personal assets, not trust assets. As a result, these personal assets are deemed part of your estate and, even if the pour-over will makes clear they should pass to a trust, that transfer will likely need to be overseen by your states probate court.

Do you need a pour-over will?

If you have created a trust and intend for your personal assets to be directed towards that trust, then a pour-over will is likely something youll need. A pour-over trust ensures that any items of property not already included the trust get added in at the end of your life. If you fail to create a pour-over will, the assets not included in the trust will not become a part of it. Instead, they will be distributed as if you dont have a will at all, following your states intestate rules.