Making Revisions to a Living Trust

A living trust is a legal arrangement established before your death that allocates your assets to certain beneficiaries through a trustee. For instance, if you and your spouse died, and your underage children were left to inherit your estate, their inheritance would be put into a trust to be distributed to them at a specific age. You may make specific requirements in your trust as to the age and amount of distribution to your beneficiaries. You must have what is called a revocable trust to make any revisions to the trust.

Things You'll Need

• Formal amendment
• Notary

Instructions

1. Ask your lawyer or legal representative for a formal amendment to make revisions to the living trust. A formal amendment is required to make sure no fraudulent changes are made to the living trust.

2. Reference the specific changes or revisions you want on the formal amendment, rewriting entire sections if you need to.

3. Take the document to a notary and sign it. The notary will put his seal on the document.

4. Take the formal amendment and the original trust to your lawyer for rewriting of the trust.

5. Inspect the living trust document afterwards to make sure all your changes were made properly.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep your living trust document in a safe place in your home so you may look it over from time to time.

• Do not attempt to make changes to the living trust by simply scratching items out and writing new directives in the margins. This type of revision may not hold up in court and your trust may be considered void.

References

• Estate Plan Center: Problems With a Living Trust
• Investopedia: Establishing a Revocable Living Trust