As an Attorney, I love going to Court. It is really fun putting together a case, taking depositions, and getting ready for trials, and there is nothing more fun than a trial. Unfortunately, most people don’t like going to Court, and they really don’t like paying my hourly fees. Sadly, in the past month, I have had several different families call me, and they now have to pay me to go to Court because the Living Trust of their parents failed to avoid Probate Court.
Why? Well the stories vary, and some might not be avoidable, but for the families who called about loved ones with dementia whose spouse just passed and they are still in charge, in each case removing the parent with dementia without the Court became impossible, so the family will be paying me not only to appoint a new Trustee but also to report to the Court for the rest of their loved one’s life. Hopefully, their loved one isn’t like Mary (not her real name), who lived for 18 years unable to take care of herself or her money after a stroke, and her daughters and I had to go to Court to manage her Trust because, like most Living Trusts, there was no plan for, “What if I have a stroke and can’t sign my name?“
I am on a crusade to keep families out of our expensive, messy and sometimes corrupt Probate Courts. So I will ask you to think about what if something happens to me and I can’t sign my name; who will pay my bills? Planning ahead for strokes or dementia that take away our ability to sign our name can prevent your kids from having to go to Court.
