What Are the Benefits of a Secret Trust?

Given how popular trusts are, you may decide to incorporate one into your estate plan. If you do create a trust, you might decide to make it a secret trust. Why would you want your trust to be a secret trust? The simple answer is that there are benefits to a secret trust. The Knoxville trust attorneys at Stivers Law discuss the benefits of a secret trust.

The Last Will and Testament

Most people are familiar with the concept of a Will. At its most basic, a Will is a legal document that allows the Testator (person executing the Will) to make gifts of assets owned by the Testator at the time of his/her death. Because a Will must be submitted to the court for probate, the terms of a Will become available to the public. Therefore, gifts made in a Will cannot be concealed or kept secret.

Trust Basics

A trust is a relationship whereby property is held by one party for the benefit of another. A trust is created by a Settlor (also referred to as a Maker or Grantor), who transfers property to a Trustee. The Trustee holds that property for the trust’s beneficiaries.  All trusts are divided into one of two categories – testamentary or inter vivos – the latter of which is more commonly referred to as a living trust. Assets gifted in a trust are distributed according to the terms of the trust agreement. Although a trust agreement does not typically need to be submitted to a court, the existence of a testamentary trust itself as well as the identity of the beneficiaries of the trust, are usually included in a decedent’s Will.

What Is a Secret or Semi-Secret Trust?

A secret trust is one in which a Testator appears to leave assets outright to someone in a Will; however, that beneficiary is really a Trustee for another beneficiary. For example, you might leave $100,000 in your Will to Beneficiary A absolutely when, in fact, you have made it clear to Beneficiary A that the $100,000 is intended to be used for the benefit of Beneficiary B.

A semi-secret trust is one that is mentioned in a Testator’s Will; however, the names of the trust beneficiaries and/or other terms of the trust are not mentioned in the Will. By way of illustration, imagine that you gifted that same $100,000 to a trust in your Will and simply stated that the funds are “to be used according to my wishes.” In that case, the existence of the trust is made public in your Will; however, the beneficiaries and terms of the trust are not made public.

The creation of a secret or semi-secret trust requires an arrangement between the Testator and the Trustee of the trust. That arrangement should, ideally, be set out in a separate document. Some people do make oral agreements; however, doing so is risky because upholding an oral agreement is always more difficult than upholding one in writing.

Do I Need a Secret Trust?

Keeping a trust secret is usually done for one of two reasons. Either a Testator wants to keep the terms of his/her estate plan out of the public eye altogether or wants to keep beneficiaries/heirs from knowing the terms of that plan. Public figures, celebrities, and individuals with considerable wealth may simply want to avoid public scrutiny. You don’t need to fall into one of those categories, however, to benefit from a secret or semi-secret trust. Maybe you simply don’t want all your heirs to know how you distributed your assets. Using a secret or semi-secret trust allows you to keep those details private

Contact Knoxville Trust Attorneys

For more information, please join us for an upcoming FREE webinar. If you have additional questions or concerns about the benefits of creating a secret trust, contact the experienced Knoxville trust attorneys at Stivers Law by calling (305) 456-3255 to schedule an appointment.

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