Idaho Falls Estate Planning for Your Young Children

Our Idaho Falls Estate Planning Attorneys have experience helping parents create a customized estate plan that includes caring for their small children. We are parents ourselves and we understand that it is vitally important for parents of young children to get their estate plan completed. When done correctly and with some thought, our clients are assured that they have a plan in place to protect and provide for their children. Our role is to advise our clients so that they have peace of mind knowing that their small children will be cared for.

Our Idaho Falls Estate Planning team includes experienced partners Randy Budge and Lane Erickson, and attorneys Nathan Palmer and Dave Bagley. We have received the highest ratings under several well-known legal standards, including AVVO, Justia, and Martindale Hubbell. We have helped parents with small children for over 70 years so that they have a complete and customized estate plan.

We all often say and laugh at the statement that nothing in life is for sure, except death and taxes. The reality is that death will come our way at some time. While we don’t know when, we do know it will happen. Sometimes parents of young children die. If there is no estate plan in place by the parent, the people that are left behind are forced to come up with a plan for the children. Questions such as: Who will the children live with? How will the children be provided for financially? Who will take care of any medical and health care the children might need? These are just a few of the questions that other will have to resolve if you don’t have a complete estate plan.

Our Idaho Falls estate planning lawyers have experience working with parents of young children. We have helped many parents such as yourself consider and make plans to resolve the questions listed above

Perhaps the main questions that our clients with young children ask us is: “How can I provide financially for my children if I am gone?” Our goal is to help parents of young children understand that they can use their Last Will and Testament to create a “Minor’s Trust”. A Minor’s Trust is a legal way for a parent to provide directions about how their money and/or property will be held used to benefit their children until they become adults. A person is named who will control the money. They are called the trustee. The trustee is chosen by the parents. They are given the responsibility to follow the parents directions and use any money or property in the trust for the children.

In a minor’s trust the parents maintain control, even though they are gone. The parents provide language in the trust that specifically sets the age when distributions of money and/or property are made to the children. Before children reach the age of distribution, the trust defines all of the specific uses and reasons the trustee can use money and property to benefit the children. Keep in mind that there is no requirement that any money or property in a trust must be given to the children at any specific age, including when they turn 18. The parent has complete control. They can any age they want when a distribution will be made. This allows each parent to consider and choose the age when they believe that a distribution would help the child the most.

Some parents choose more than one age. For example, the parent may say in the trust that the first distribution will occur at the age of 21. These parents may then choose to make additional distributions at the ages of 25, and 35. The main thing to understand is that the parent who creates the trust is in complete control of the instructions they leave in the trust. This gives each parent the chance to customize their instructions for distributions in a way that will help and not hurt their child.

Using your customized estate plan to provide for your small children is not only smart, it is a vital step each parent should complete. We are also parents and we know the importance of having a plan for small children. Our team of Estate Planning Lawyers in Idaho Falls are here to help you. We are available to discuss your options and answer your questions at an initial consultation. Call us toll free at 877.232.6101 or 208.232.6101. You can also email us directly at racine@racinelaw.net. We will answer your questions and help you solve your Idaho Falls Estate Planning problems.