Is Having a Will Really Having an Estate Plan?

Is Having a Will Really Having an Estate Plan?

By Patricia Louise Nelson of Two Spruce Law

Sometimes I hear “I have a Will, so I have an estate plan.” I agree – to a point. Certainly, a Will constitutes part of an estate plan.  If all you have is a Will, I would not argue that you do not have an estate plan. I would argue that you have an incomplete estate plan.

In my opinion, an estate plan is more than a Will. A complete estate plan includes a power of attorney, an Advance Directive, and, very likely, a revocable living trust.  Bear in mind that a Will requires probate. A Will does not avoid probate.

Saying you have an estate plan when you just have a Will is like saying you have a car when really what you have is an engine.  A trust, on the other hand, is like a full car – engine, transmission, body – the whole thing. That is because a trust can get itself to the beneficiaries after the death of the owner without the assistance of probate. 

A Will needs probate, so it is like an engine outside of a car. It needs probate – arguably probate provides the transition and body of the car – to get the assets to the beneficiaries after the owner dies.  Leaving assets outside a trust intentionally (like when you just have a Will) or unintentionally is sort of like having to call a tow truck to help take the assets to where they need to go.

Let’s avoid calling the tow truck! Give us a call.