Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New Jersey

Irrevocable trust for estate attorney fees

Can an attorney have an irrevocable trust pay for their services provided for an estate? I understand that an irrevocable trust uses it's own tax ID which makes it exempt from probate and taxation, but is it obligated to pay the fees? Shouldn't the estate be paying for it? If the trust does pay for it, should the estate reimburse the trust? If an attorney were to bill this kind of trust for estate reasons, would this be considered fraud?


Asked on 6/17/09, 2:13 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jonathan Chester The Law Office of Jonathan S. Chester, Esq., LLC

Re: Irrevocable trust for estate attorney fees

I need a lot more information in order to answer your question. At a minimum, I would need to review a copy of the Irrevocable trust and the decedent's will.

In general, the attorney would not be allowed to charge estate expenses to the trust and vice-versa, however it is possible that the documents allow this.

Read more
Answered on 6/17/09, 8:45 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Probate, Trusts, Wills & Estates questions and answers in New Jersey