Modlin Legal Services, Inc. 

A Will

• Allows a person to say what they want to happen to their property.

• Also allows them to nominate a guardian for their children and their children’s property.

• Becomes effective when a person dies.

• If there is no will, the judge will apply laws of intestate succession to distribute the property, and will decide who will be raising the children.

A Trust

• Is a legal entity that holds title to a person’s assets (the person who establishes the Trust is called a Settlor).
  Also, it serves as a substitute for a will in that it describes how to dispose of the property after death. 

• Is not mandatory, but is recommended for anyone who owns property worth  $100,000 or more.
  

• Becomes effective when it’s established. However, the Settlor can cancel or change the Trust at any time. A trust has no record keeping requirements during Settlor’s lifetime.

• If a person dies without a Trust, and their estate is worth over $100,000, it will end up in probate court, which is very expensive (at least $35,000 for a $600,000 estate), drawn out, and public.

Powers of Attorney

• For Property Management
• Allows the person to designate someone to manage their financial affairs – sign checks, pay bills, manage investments.

• Power of Attorney for Health Care (aka “Living Will”)
• Allows the person to:
• Name someone who will carry out their wishes and make medical decisions for them.
• State their health care wishes, including what to do if they are terminally ill and/or in a coma.
• Specify whether they want their organs donated.
• Specify how they want to be buried.

• Powers of Attorney become effective only once doctors determine that the person is incapacitated and is unable to make decisions on their own, and terminate at death.

• If there are no Powers of Attorney in place:
• The person may not get the treatments they want.
• The court may appoint someone who is not their first choice to make decisions for them.
• The loved ones will have to make really hard decisions.  
• The case may end up in court, and a judge who has no medical knowledge will be deciding what sort of care the person should receive.