I am a Fellow of The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (“ACTEC”). ACTEC is a nonprofit association of lawyers and law professors who practice throughout the United States, Canada, and other foreign countries, all of whom have at least 10 years’ experience in the active practice of probate and trust law or estate planning. All ACTEC Fellows are dedicated to maintaining outstanding reputations and exceptional skill in our field. We also contribute to the development and improvement of the practice through lecturing, writing, teaching, and participating in bar and other professional activities.

The ACTEC Foundation (the “Foundation”) is the philanthropic arm of ACTEC and is focused on providing trust, estate and tax learning for professionals, families and law students. Most of its resources are complimentary, can be accessed through ACTEC Foundation website, and include videos and podcasts that address frequently-asked questions about estate planning matters for families as well as professionals in the field.

Many of the videos cover topics that my clients frequently ask me about.  One of those questions is “What is a Revocable Trust and do I Need One?” In this video, ACTEC Fellow and Professor Mary Radford, Professor of Law at Georgia State University, provides helpful information about revocable trusts and avoiding probate. Like Georgia, Tennessee’s probate process is streamlined and not burdensome. Therefore, I don’t necessarily recommend that my clients try to avoid probate completely. Nevertheless, I often recommend the use of revocable trusts for other reasons, such as owning out-of-state real estate (so as to avoid probate in another state), privacy (particularly when the estate plan is unusual or complicated), or asset management (during incapacity). I hope you enjoy Professor Radford’s 10 minute video.

Photo by  designer491 from Shutterstock