In Winchester, Connecticut, a trust is an arrangement in which property is held by one individual (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary).

There are numerous reasons why a person might set up a trust. A well-managed trust, started with a substantial amount of money, can mature into a sizable college fund for a child. Furthermore, if the trust is well-drafted, the beneficiary can be restricted in how they use the money, so they don't waste it.

If you want to set up a trust, you can make the beneficiary's use of the property as restricted or as permissive as you like. As a simple instance, you might want to dictate that the beneficiary can only use the money for emergencies, or for general living expenses. If the trust is thoroughly drafted, this is totally feasible.

Of course, the trust could also be set up to allow the beneficiary unfettered access to the fund, or a certain 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 Winchester, CT Trust

To implement a legitimate trust in Winchester, Connecticut, 4 elements must be present. The first element is purpose - the property being held in trust must be there for a reason. Your trust can serve just about any lawful purpose you can think of.

Second, every trust, to be valid, has to assign a trustee. This is the individual or other entity (such as a corporation) who oversees the property that embodies the trust. They possess and control the property, and are accountable for seeing that it is utilized according to the purpose of the trust.

The third element is a beneficiary. The beneficiary is a person or entity who the trust is designed to benefit. Although a beneficiary has to be named, they don't actually have to exist at the time the trust is written. For example, if a person sets up a trust to benefit his or her grandchildren, and doesn't yet have any, the trust is valid. If and when their grandchildren are born, the rights that the trust creates will vest in them immediately.

Fourth and finally, the trust must contain what is known as the "corpus" or "body." The corpus is the money and/or property which is being held in trust. For a trust to be legitimate, the corpus must be precisely identified.

Can A Winchester, Connecticut Trust Drafting Attorney Help?

While it's fairly easy to list off the basic requirements for a valid trust, actually creating and implementing one can be fairly confusing. Therefore, you should probably seek the advice of a Winchester, Connecticut attorney if you wish to set up a trust.