Understandably so, you may not want any external party or factor to interfere with the promise you made to your beneficiaries; in that you would still offer them financial support even when you are, sadly, no longer around to do so directly. More specifically, it would be most unfortunate if your due creditors participated in collection activities (i.e., repossessing the assets serving as your collateral) and thereby minimized the amount you left behind to sustain your loved ones. This is all to say that you must adopt certain estate planning tactics effective immediately. Read on to discover what strategies to adopt to protect your assets from creditors and how a seasoned Broward County estate lawyer at The Probate Lawyers can help you execute them.
What happens if I do not set up asset protection in my estate plan?
Simply put, if you do not assign your assets to an estate plan, they may be left vulnerable to the collection activation of your due creditors. This may ultimately reduce what belongs to you and thereby what you are allowed to distribute upon your unfortunate passing. More specific examples of actions you may be exposed to read as follows:
- Your due creditors may garnish your assets in the event of unpaid credit card bills and medical bills.
- Your due creditors may garnish your assets in the event of your bankruptcy filing.
- Your due creditors may garnish your assets in the event your spouse files for divorce.
- Your due creditors may garnish your assets in the event you face penalties after civil lawsuit proceedings.
What estate planning strategies can I adopt to protect my assets from creditors?
You may adopt several estate planning documents to protect your assets from your creditors. The ones you ultimately choose to enforce may be dependent on the type of assets in your possession. But arguably the most popular tool used to accomplish this goal is an irrevocable trust. This is because, upon transferring your assets into an irrevocable trust, they may no longer be considered under your direct ownership. Therefore, your due creditors may be inhibited from going after such assets that technically do not belong to you.
You must understand that such estate planning strategies must be initiated as a precautionary measure rather than as a reaction. In other words, you must not establish an irrevocable trust after your bankruptcy filing, your divorce filing, your being served with a lawsuit, or otherwise. This is because doing so may be considered an illegal activity; with possible charges of concealment, fraudulent transfer, tax evasion, contempt, bankruptcy fraud, or the like, headed your way. Evidently, this may have you in deeper trouble than when you were initially facing the collection activities of your due creditors.
In conclusion, There are many benefits to establishing an estate plan from early on. So please do so with a competent Broward County estate lawyer from The Probate Lawyers. We look forward to having a conversation with you.
