In El Paso County, Colorado, a trust is an arrangement in which property is held by one person (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary).

Trusts can serve any number of purposes. They can be set up to ensure that the child has a college fund, or to see that the beneficiary's basic needs are met, without the money being spent on frivolities.

Regardless of the purpose for which you're establishing a trust, you can be sure that the beneficiary will only be able to spend the trust fund in ways you approve of. This is because a trust document, at the time of drafting, can place any restrictions or allowances you want on the beneficiary's use of the money. Therefore, if you want them to only be able to spend it on education, for example, you can do that.

Of course, the trust could also be set up to authorize the beneficiary unfettered access to the fund, or a particular amount of money could be released from the fund to the beneficiary each month, for the beneficiary to use as he or she sees fit.

What to Include in Any El Paso County, CO Trust

To set up a valid trust in El Paso County, Colorado, 4 elements are required. First, the trust must have a stated purpose, and this purpose must be clearly laid out in the documents that create the trust.

The second required element is a trustee. The trustee's job is to supervise and manage the money that makes up the trust. They are also required to take reasonable efforts to ensure that the money is only used for the purpose of the original trust agreement.

Third, there must be a named beneficiary. This is the person, persons, or entity who is really benefiting from the trust. This person or entity must be clearly identified, or must be identifiable at some point in the future that can be objectively defined.

Lastly, the trust needs to really be composed of something. A trust document must name the money or property which is really being held in trust, which is recognized as the "corpus" or "body" of the trust.

Can A El Paso County, Colorado Trust Drafting Attorney Help?

While the elements of a valid trust are relatively simple and easy to remember, drafting a trust that is sure to be carried out according to the wishes of the person making it can still be complex. For that reason, a good El Paso County, Colorado attorney specializing in estate planning and the drafting trusts may prove invaluable.