Children’s Inheritance – Who is the right trustee to protect it? One of the main reasons why most people write their Wills is to protect their children’s inheritance. But who is the right trustee to protect this until they are ready to inherit it? Laura Richardson’s latest article provides some invaluable advice . . .
For children under the age of 18 to be able to benefit from a Will, the children’s inheritance must be held on Trust by someone who will protect the inheritance until the children are old enough to inherit in their own right. In some cases, parents will specify that their children cannot inherit in their own right until a specific age older than 18, or until they have fulfilled a certain life event such as marriage. However unless the Will states otherwise, a child would usually be able to inherit in their own right at 18 years old.
It is important to note that should you die without making a valid Will, the Court would decide who would inherit your Estate which may harm your children’s inheritance. Should the Court decide that your children would be the beneficiaries and should any of your children be under the age of 18 at the time of your death then the Court would have to appoint someone to hold the inheritance on Trust for those children. This is important because the Trustee chosen by the Court may not be the person that you would have chosen! Furthermore, in some cases, the Trustee can access monies on a discretionary basis to pay for your children’s care and upbringing. A Court-appointed Trustee may make very different decisions regarding necessary expenditure for your children than you would have made.
Therefore, it is important to carefully consider who you appoint as Trustee within your Will to protect your children’s inheritance. If you are appointing a Trustee to access funds on a discretionary basis, then it is a good idea to include a letter to your Trustee detailing any expenses you feel would be acceptable during your children’s upbringing, as well as expenditures that you would prefer were avoided. For example, you may wish for your Trustee to access funds for driving lessons and a first car. However, you may wish to stipulate that the funds will not be used to buy a sports car!
Within your letter to your Trustee, you may also like to include some suggestions for the upbringing of your children. This could include religious preference or preferences regarding their moral upbringing. You could also include other information such as favourite places that you would like your children to be taken in order to preserve memories that you shared as a family together. This letter is informal and therefore you can include as little or as much detail as you would like. The letter may need to be redrafted every couple of years to make sure that it is still accurate and relevant.
If you would like to discuss appointing a Trustee within your Will or any aspect of Will writing that may affect your children’s inheritance, contact Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services today! Whether in Kelvedon or the surrounding areas of Essex, we offer a free initial consultation in order to talk over how we can assist you and answer any queries. For the peace of mind that your children’s inheritance will be safeguarded by a person of your choosing, call Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services today!
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