Wisconsin Trust Attorney | Heritage Law Office

Protect your family, preserve your assets, and plan for the future with personalized trust planning.

Heritage Law Office helps individuals, families, and business owners throughout Wisconsin understand and establish trusts tailored to their estate planning goals. Whether you're considering a revocable living trust, an irrevocable trust, or another arrangement, we can help you evaluate your options.

Convenient consultations by phone and video are available. You can begin discussing your needs without an unnecessary trip to a law office.

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Wisconsin: 414-253-8500

Trusts as Part of a Wisconsin Estate Plan

A trust is a legal arrangement in which a person known as the grantor or settlor establishes instructions for a trustee to manage assets for designated beneficiaries. Depending on the terms of the trust, the grantor may also serve as trustee or receive certain benefits.

A properly designed trust can support estate planning by:

Establishing instructions for management and distribution of assets.
Helping family members avoid probate for property properly held in the trust.
Planning for the management of assets during incapacity.
Providing for children, beneficiaries with disabilities, or other loved ones.
Offering greater privacy than may be available through probate.
Addressing certain tax, asset protection, or business succession objectives where appropriate.

Not every trust provides all these benefits. The appropriate structure depends on your assets, beneficiaries, family circumstances, and legal objectives.

Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts in Wisconsin

Revocable Living Trusts

A revocable living trust generally allows the person establishing it to retain substantial control over trust assets during their lifetime.

Depending on the trust terms and applicable law, the grantor may be able to change provisions and beneficiaries, add or remove assets, or revoke the trust.

A properly funded revocable living trust may help avoid probate for trust assets and provide continuity of management upon incapacity. However, it generally does not shield the grantor's own assets from their creditors or automatically reduce estate taxes.

Irrevocable Trusts

An irrevocable trust generally places greater restrictions on the grantor's ability to change its terms or control its assets.

Depending on the structure and circumstances, an irrevocable trust may be considered for particular estate or gift tax objectives, long-term care planning, beneficiary protections, or business interests.

Important: An irrevocable trust does not automatically protect assets from creditors, exclude property from a taxable estate, or preserve Medicaid eligibility. Timing, retained powers and rights, specific trust provisions, and applicable law all matter.

Because irrevocable trusts can involve significant restrictions on control over property, review the consequences before transferring assets.

Other Trust Planning Options

Depending on your needs, specialized trusts may be worth considering. Examples include:

Asset Protection Trusts: Arrangements designed for particular creditor-related planning objectives, subject to important limitations.
Charitable Trusts: Trusts that may support charitable goals and address specific planning and tax considerations.
Special Needs Trusts: Trusts that may provide support for a person with a disability while addressing means-tested benefit eligibility.
Spendthrift Trusts: Trust arrangements that may limit certain transfers by beneficiaries and offer protections subject to applicable law.
Bypass or Credit Shelter Trusts: Certain arrangements considered in married couples' estate plans.
Trusts for Business Owners: Planning involving ownership and succession of businesses or investment assets.
Pet Trusts: Trust provisions designed to provide for a pet's care.

Some people benefit from specialized structures, while a simple living trust or another estate planning approach is sufficient for others.

Benefits of a Trust in Wisconsin

Avoid Probate for Properly Funded Assets

Assets owned by a trust generally may be administered or distributed under the trust's terms without passing through the probate process. Assets never transferred to a trust or otherwise addressed in an estate plan may still require probate.

Learn about probate and why families may want to avoid it.

Plan for Incapacity

A properly drafted revocable living trust can provide for successor management of trust property if the original trustee becomes unable to serve. Financial and healthcare powers of attorney may still be important for matters outside the trust.

Plan for Beneficiaries

Trusts may specify when and how beneficiaries receive assets, provide for minors, or authorize management for someone who needs financial assistance. The language should be tailored to your circumstances and comply with applicable law.

Maintain Greater Privacy

Trust administration generally occurs outside the normal probate process, which may provide more privacy. However, a trust is not confidential in every situation, and some disclosures may be required by law or court process.

Coordinate Business and Estate Planning

Business owners may need to coordinate trusts with operating agreements, succession agreements, ownership restrictions, and tax considerations. Planning for company interests often requires additional analysis.

Watch Our Video About Trust Planning

Why Work With Heritage Law Office?

Estate Planning With a Financial Perspective

Attorney Brad Sarkauskas brings a background in finance, investments, taxation, and insurance to his legal practice. These areas of experience inform his work with clients considering trusts, asset ownership, and longer-term estate planning objectives.

Personalized Guidance

We work to understand your family circumstances and legal needs before discussing planning options. Our aim is to help clients understand the documents they sign, the responsibilities involved, and the limitations of different approaches.

Convenient Virtual Consultations

Many consultations and planning discussions can take place by phone and video. Certain document execution, witnessing, notarization, or asset transfer procedures may require additional arrangements.

Our Trust Planning Process

1. Discuss Your Goals

We begin by discussing the assets you own, the people you want to provide for, and the outcomes you would like to accomplish.

2. Evaluate Planning Options

We explain the relevant legal considerations and the scope and fee arrangements of any proposed engagement.

3. Prepare Your Documents

If you retain Heritage Law Office, we prepare the estate planning documents included in your engagement and explain how they work together.

4. Execute and Fund the Trust

We explain applicable signing and funding requirements and discuss any steps needed to transfer assets. A trust may not achieve its intended objectives if necessary property transfers are never completed.

How Much Does It Cost to Set Up a Trust in Wisconsin?

Fees depend on whether the plan involves a revocable or irrevocable trust, the number and type of assets, beneficiary needs, related documents, and the legal work involved.

An irrevocable trust involving special tax provisions or business interests may involve substantially different costs from a more straightforward living trust. Professional valuations, funding work, tax preparation, and ongoing administration may create additional expenses.

Read our guide to irrevocable trust costs and fees.

Frequently Asked Questions About Wisconsin Trusts

Do I need a trust if I already have a will?

Not necessarily. Wills and trusts often serve complementary purposes. A trust may provide additional benefits in asset management, beneficiary planning, incapacity planning, and probate avoidance.

Should I choose a revocable or irrevocable trust?

A revocable trust generally provides greater flexibility, while an irrevocable trust may serve specialized objectives and involve restrictions. The right choice depends on your goals, assets, and family circumstances.

Can I change my trust?

Revocable trusts generally can be modified or revoked by a person with the legal authority to do so. Irrevocable trusts are more restrictive, although certain changes may be allowed under their terms or applicable law.

Will a trust protect assets from creditors?

Not automatically. A typical revocable trust does not protect the grantor's assets from their own creditors. Certain irrevocable trusts have creditor-related protections in particular circumstances, subject to significant exceptions.

Does a trust help avoid probate?

Assets properly held in a living trust generally may pass or continue under its terms outside probate, but other property may still require probate proceedings.

Will a trust reduce estate taxes?

Not necessarily. Revocable trust property generally remains part of the grantor's taxable estate. Some specialized irrevocable trusts may support estate tax planning, depending on their provisions and applicable law.

Can I complete trust planning remotely?

Many consultations and document reviews can take place remotely. Signing, witnessing, notarization, and asset funding requirements depend on applicable law and the documents involved.

Can I transfer my business into a trust?

Business interests may be included in a broader estate or succession plan, but operating agreements, transfer restrictions, tax consequences, and other factors should be reviewed.

What happens if assets are not transferred into the trust?

A trust may not accomplish its intended goals for property it does not own. Depending on the property and overall plan, additional transfers or probate may be necessary.

How do I know what type of trust is right?

The appropriate approach depends on your assets, beneficiaries, estate planning goals, and other personal circumstances. Legal guidance can help you compare the benefits, limitations, and costs.

Contact a Wisconsin Trust Attorney

Your family's future deserves careful planning. Whether you are considering a living trust, exploring an irrevocable trust, planning for a loved one's needs, or coordinating estate planning with business interests, Heritage Law Office can help you evaluate your options.

We serve Wisconsin clients, including people in Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Waukesha, Appleton, and communities across the state, primarily through phone and video consultations.

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