Parents - Are Your Assets Protected—and Directed—The Way You Intend?
Have you considered how your assets will be managed and distributed after you're gone?
Maybe you want your youngest child to wait until they’re 30 before receiving their inheritance. Or perhaps you’d like your eldest to use the funds you’ve left to support their education.
If you're relying solely on a will to enforce these types of wishes, it’s time to take a closer look at your plan.
At John MacDonald Law P.C., we often see clients who assume a will is sufficient to carry out their wishes after death. While a will plays an important role in your estate plan, it has significant limitations—especially when it comes to setting conditions or protecting how and when your loved ones receive their inheritance.
Here’s the reality:
A will only becomes effective after your death and after your estate goes through probate—a time-consuming and costly court process. Once that process ends, your assets are distributed outright, based on your will's instructions at that moment in time. That means you lose control over how the money is used from that point forward.
For instance, you can say in your will that if your child is in college at the time of your passing, they should receive a certain amount. But you can’t enforce that they graduate—or meet future goals—before receiving anything more. That’s a problem if you care about what happens after the initial distribution.
If you want to retain control over how, when, and under what conditions your assets are distributed, a Revocable Living Trust is the better option.
Why a Revocable Living Trust?
A Revocable Living Trust allows you to set the rules—clearly, specifically, and with enforceable authority.
You decide:
Who gets what
When they get it
And under what conditions
Want your child to reach a certain age before receiving funds? No problem. Want distributions to be spaced out over several years, or tied to life milestones like earning a degree or starting a family? A trust can do that.
Unlike a will, a Revocable Living Trust remains private and avoids probate—saving your family time, legal fees, and emotional stress. The trust appoints a trustee, someone you trust to carry out your instructions. They follow the guidance laid out in your trust document and only distribute assets when the conditions are met.
That means you're not leaving things to chance—you’re leaving behind a plan.
Your Legacy, Your Terms
A Revocable Living Trust gives you the power to:
Control how your children inherit
Protect your family from unnecessary taxes and legal fees
Ensure your wishes are followed—not just now, but in the future
At John MacDonald Law P.C., we believe you should stay in control of your wealth—not the courts, not the government, and certainly not chance. We work closely with you to craft a trust that protects what you’ve built and preserves it for those you love.
It’s your legacy. Let’s make sure it’s protected—on your terms.