Christopher S. Mulvaney,

Attorney and Counselor-at-Law

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THIS WEBSITE INCLUDES GENERAL INFORMATION & THE OPINIONS OF CHRISTOPHER S. MULVANEY. IT IS INTENDED TO STIMULATE A BASIS FOR QUESTIONS RELATED TO YOUR PARTICULAR FACTUAL CIRCUMSTANCES — BEFORE YOU ACT.  THIS WEBSITE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE. IF YOU WANT LEGAL ADVICE, PLEASE MAKE A ZOOM APPOINTMENT TO SPEAK WITH ME.

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The use of email or this form for communication with MULVANEY LAW OFFICE, PLLC does not establish an Attorney-Client Relationship. If you don’t think I have responded, please check your spam folder. Time-sensitive information should not be sent through this Form or through email. Sensitive information can be uploaded to an encrypted Dropbox folder in your client file. Google Review Link Yelp Review Link

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Gonzaga University School of Law – Spokane, Washington – Class of 2002 – Cum Laude The Latin phrase “Deo patriae, scientiis, artibus” translates to “For God and country through sciences and arts”.  The initials A.M.D.G. on the seal of Gonzaga Law School stand for Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, which is Latin for “For the Greater Glory of God” the Motto of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits): a Catholic religious order founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola.

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“The study of law is sublime, and its practice vulgar.”
– Oscar Wilde

Below is a sample Beneficiary Designation naming the Trust as Beneficiary of my Fidelity accounts.

The purpose of naming the Trust as beneficiary is to address special needs or circumstances. The most commonly addressed issue is youth, but there are others such as disability, divorce, bankruptcy, alcohol addiction, drug addiction, gambling addiction, shopping addiction or just severe budgeting problems resulting in rampant overspending.

YOUTH

You decide how old is old enough to receive an inheritance under a Trust. Without a Trust, 18-year-old beneficiaries receive their entire inheritance all at once. By default, I put age 25 in the Trust template, but you can pick any age you want. I have seen ages from 19 to 55. The 55-years-old restriction was for a hard working immigrant family who was giving more than $5 to each child. They wanted their kids to have a great retirement, but did not want to subsidize loafing.

DISABILITY

A child who is receiving Social Security Disability is means tested and cannot receive and keep a direct inheritance. It is therefore vitally important to have a Revocable Living Trust that directs the gift to the disabled child to a Special Needs Trust or equivalent to be created by the Successor Trustee at the time the surviving spouse passes away. It is possible to create a Special Needs Trust much earlier. However, if the parents fund a Special Needs Trust during their lives, they will have to file a separate tax return for the Special Needs Trust for the rest of their lives.

Here is a link to WashingtonLawHelp.org which has information about Special Needs Trusts and ABLE accounts.

DIVORCE

An adult child who is going through a divorce is potentially vulnerable to losing inheritance in the divorce if the Court has to rule on the assets because they belong to the adult child. However, assets in a Trust for the benefit of an adult child are not part of that adult child’s divorce estate and cannot be redistributed by the Divorce Court.

BANKRUPTCY

An adult child who is in bankruptcy has no direct control over assets in Trust for that adult child’s benefit. Therefore, the assets are not part of the bankruptcy estate and cannot be attached by the Bankruptcy Trustee. The Successor Trustee of the Trust can simply pay the adult child beneficiary when their bankruptcy is over.

ALCOHOL ADDICTION

An adult child who has an alcohol addiction should not be allowed to waste all that you have given that person on booze. Instead, that person should have no direct control over assets, and they should be held in Trust for that adult child’s benefit. Therefore, as the drinking becomes less of an issue, the person can gain more control of the money.

DRUG ADDICTION

An adult child who has a drug addiction should not be allowed to waste all that you have given that person on drugs. Instead, that person should have no direct control over assets, and they should be held in Trust for that adult child’s benefit. Therefore, as the drug addiction becomes less of an issue, the person can gain more control of the money.

GAMBLING ADDICTION

An adult child who has a gambling problem should not be allowed to waste all that you have given that person in the casino. Instead, that person should have no direct control over assets, and they should be held in Trust for that adult child’s benefit. Therefore, as the gambling becomes less of an issue, the person can gain more control of the money.

SHOPPING ADDICTION

An adult child who cannot stop shopping should not be allowed to continue to do so with your money. That child should not have direct control over assets . Instead, assets should be held in Trust for that adult child’s benefit. Therefore, as the shopping issue becomes less of an issue, the person can gain more control of the money.

RAMPANT OVERSPENDING

An adult child who rampantly overspends should not be enabled by having direct control inherited assets. Instead, assets can be held in Trust for that adult child’s benefit, and paid to third parties if necessary. Therefore, as the overspending issue becomes less of an issue, the person can gain more control of the money.

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Washington State residents can meet with me in Zoom/DocuSign from anywhere in the world, and I can notarize their electronic signatures because I am a remote online notary.  Just email me an image of your photo ID.

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