I Have an Addicted Son; Should I Disinherit Him?
January 5, 2012 By Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
Sadly, many Americans have trouble with drug, alcohol, and gambling addictions However, if you have an addicted child, you don’t have to disinherit him. In most cases, disinheritance causes great emotional trauma as inheritances represent the love of a parent for a child (whether we want to admit it or not.)
Disinheritance could cause emotional upset which may make the addiction worse and cause lifelong discord between your children and even your grandchildren and great-grandchildren. However, even though we are encouraging you not to disinherit an addicted child; we DO NOT advise that you provide an outright inheritance.
An outright inheritance, typically, isn’t in anyone’s best interest. For an addicted beneficiary, an outright inheritance may prove deadly as it has been found to fuel addictions. Instead ,provide an inheritance in a trust with an independent professional trustee such as a corporate fiduciary or a CPA.
Don’t name your surviving spouse or another child as trustee of the trustee. Your addicted beneficiary will likely hassle the trustee and it’s not good for the well-being of a family member or for the family relationships.
The independent trustee can pay your child’s expenses directly to a rehabilitation facility, medical professional, landlord, and the like. In addition, if your beneficiary gains control over the addiction, some funds can be distributed to him if he passes a drug or alcohol test, as appropriate. You choose the terms with the advice of your legal counsel.
An added benefit to providing a lifetime trust for your addicted beneficiary is that it can’t be seized by your beneficiaries’ creditors or divorcing spouse. It will always be there, unless it gets spent down for needs, and can’t be taken from your beneficiary.
Consult with a qualified estate planning attorney to see how your trust provisions should be drafted to meet the needs of your particular beneficiary. There are alternatives to disinheriting an addicted child.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Deborah Sexton
Experienced estate planning attorneys Fayetteville AR of the Deborah Sexton Law Office PA offers estate planning and business planning resources to residents of Fayetteville AR.
Copyright Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
More information about Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
An outright inheritance, typically, isn’t in anyone’s best interest. For an addicted beneficiary, an outright inheritance may prove deadly as it has been found to fuel addictions. Instead ,provide an inheritance in a trust with an independent professional trustee such as a corporate fiduciary or a CPA.
Don’t name your surviving spouse or another child as trustee of the trustee. Your addicted beneficiary will likely hassle the trustee and it’s not good for the well-being of a family member or for the family relationships.
The independent trustee can pay your child’s expenses directly to a rehabilitation facility, medical professional, landlord, and the like. In addition, if your beneficiary gains control over the addiction, some funds can be distributed to him if he passes a drug or alcohol test, as appropriate. You choose the terms with the advice of your legal counsel.
An added benefit to providing a lifetime trust for your addicted beneficiary is that it can’t be seized by your beneficiaries’ creditors or divorcing spouse. It will always be there, unless it gets spent down for needs, and can’t be taken from your beneficiary.
Consult with a qualified estate planning attorney to see how your trust provisions should be drafted to meet the needs of your particular beneficiary. There are alternatives to disinheriting an addicted child.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Deborah Sexton
Experienced estate planning attorneys Fayetteville AR of the Deborah Sexton Law Office PA offers estate planning and business planning resources to residents of Fayetteville AR.
Copyright Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
More information about Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
View all articles published by Deborah Sexton Law Office, PA
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
