As we have often stated in this blog, the job of an estate planning attorney is to help you memorialize (put in writing) and legally establish your wishes for the disposition of your assets. We are also there to help put into legally executable form any desired celebration and/or tribute to your life, as well as directives regarding children, your health care, or other matters that may come up either during your lifetime or after your death. In this blog we have also discussed different types of trusts that can be established as part of an estate plan. Here, however, we are going to take a look at another kind of trust not related to taxes, heirloom jewelry or estate property. This entity is known as a funeral trust.
A funeral trust may involve an attorney, but mostly it falls within the bailiwick of a funeral director. What a funeral trust offers is the opportunity to plan, and pre-pay, funeral and related memorial expenses, in advance of a person’s death. This situation is often referred to as “pre-need planning,” and that is an apt description. In looking ahead, as estate planning attorneys always encourage, this can give you peace of mind in knowing that the details are as you want them to be. What’s more, it takes the burden of such decisions (and the costs) off of your loved ones and/or family members at a time when people and business decisions will be under emotional stress.
A funeral trust is an actual trust, and the funds it contains are funds submitted by the creator, or grantor. It may be set up as revocable or irrevocable, following the applicable state and federal laws just as other trusts do, regarding withdrawals, revisions, and the like. The funeral director you select will help you establish the trust, but it is, of course, a good idea to keep your estate planning attorney informed.
In the State of California, the California Funeral Directors Association (CFDA) established what is known as the California Master Trust in 1985, to provide a streamlined process for creating a funeral trust.
If you have questions about funeral trusts in California, or any other estate planning matter, please contact me and we can discuss them all. Whether you need to begin, or update, a comprehensive estate plan, from simple wills to complex trusts, I’m here to provide the answers and legal guidance to do it right. Let’s set up a time to talk, at your convenience. Just give us a call at 818.956.9200.
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