Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Florida

Re: Trusts

Only an "I" may own an IRA, and a Trust is not an I. So IRAs and the like must be handled through the beneficiary designation. Other accounts and life insurance policies may be handled through beneficiary designations, if that will work for your situation. However, in the event of incapacity of the Trustee, the Successor Trustee will not be able to access those accounts unless she/he has a Power Of Attorney. I usually recommend that life insurance policies with cash value be transferred into the Trust, and that all life insurance policies have the Trust as beneficiary (to avoid the situation where the insured and the beneficiary might be in an accident where the insured is killed and the beneficiary is incapacitated and thus unable to file the necessary claim papers).