February 2, 2021

A living trust is also referred to as a revocable trust which, as the name implies, empowers you to make decisions while you are still alive about the purpose of the trust or even its existence. This is because a revocable trust is a flexible financial structure or legal entity that empowers the person who creates it to remove, alter or change the trust assets or to amend the trust itself or alter beneficiaries at any point during their lifetime.

The very nature of a revocable trust is such that you can decide in the future that the terms or beneficiaries need to be updated. These small changes can be accomplished through small amendments, bigger changes might need to be achieved through revoking the trust altogether. 

If you wish to dissolve a revocable trust, it’s important to take the necessary steps to do so. You will need to remove all of the assets that have been transferred into it as a first step in dismantling a revocable trust you have already created. You would then want to fill out a formal revocation form to create a paper trail and written evidence of your intention to dissolve the trust. 

Sign this and get it notarized. Your local area might also require an additional step of filing that paperwork with a local probate or estate court. To make sure that you have all of the details managed in the revoking of an existing living trust, work directly with an estate planning lawyer who has experience in this field.     

Need a NJ estate planning lawyer to help you create or revoke a trust? Reach out today.