• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.

Attorneys & Counselors

Call Now: (281) 759-3213

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS
LP Payment button
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • About The American Academy
    • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • Mission Statement
    • Multimedia
    • Published Books
    • The Academy Fellow Designation
  • Services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
      • Are You A Caregiver
      • Coping With Alzheimer’s
      • Guardianship & Conservatorship
      • Hospice Care
      • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Veteran’s Benefits
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Seminars
  • Testimonials
    • Client Testimonials
    • Representative Clients
    • Review Us
  • Resources
    • Areas We Serve
      • Baytown
      • Conroe
      • Galveston
      • Houston
      • Pasadena
      • Woodlands
      • West University Place
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Galveston Elder Law
      • Houston Elder Law
      • Sugar Land Elder Law
      • West University Place Elder Law
      • Woodlands Elder Law
    • Estate Planning Resources
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top Estate Planning Techniques
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Avoidance Tax Planning
      • Avoiding Probate
      • Business Succession Planning
      • Charitable Gifting
      • Elder Law
      • Estate Planning
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • IRA and Retirement Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Living Trusts
      • Medicaid
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Power of Attorney
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Trusts
      • Veterans Benefits
      • Wills
    • LGBTQ Resources
    • Probate Resources
      • Houston Probate
      • Sugarland Probate
      • Woodlands Probate
      • West University Place Probate
    • Probate & Trust Administration Resources
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Special Needs Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Contact Us
  • BLOG
Home » BLOG » How Can I Make Changes to My Trust?

How Can I Make Changes to My Trust?

February 3, 2016 by Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Trusts were once used primarily by wealthy families who wished to pass down the family wealth from one generation to another while still retaining some degree of control over the assets. Today, however, trusts are a common addition to any comprehensive estate plan. If you have included a trust (or several) in your estate plan and now wish to change or amend your trust you may be concerned that making changes to your trust is a complicated undertaking. In most cases, this is not so.

First, it is important to understand what type of trust you have created. A trust can be irrevocable or revocable. An irrevocable trust cannot be changed, amended, or terminated once created. This means you cannot alter the terms of the trust at all –not even to add or delete a beneficiary. Therefore, if you created an irrevocable trust it cannot be changed. If, however, you created a revocable trust there are several ways in which the trust can be changed.

The purpose of the change, as well as the complexity of the change, will be a significant factor in determining how to effectuate the change. If you simply want to add funds to the trust you probably do not have to make any changes. A well drafted trust usually includes language which allows you to add funds after the trust becomes effective. Other changes though do require you to do something to legally reflect the change.

The easiest route is to amend the trust. This is typically accomplished by reducing the intended change to writing and adding the “amendment” to the original trust. The addition is labeled “Amendment to Trust”, explains the intended change, and is signed, dated, and notarized. This works well if you want to add or delete a beneficiary for example.

When making more significant changes to a trust a restatement often works better. This requires you to rewrite the original trust and include all the new changes in the new document. Although it may appear as though you are simply creating a new trust, legally you are not. Revoking the existing trust and creating a new one can create problems because all of the trust property must be transferred out of the first trust and into the new one, a process that often results in a mistake. By legally restating the trust you can make even major changes to the trust without the need to shift the trust assets around and risk an error.

Of you need to make a change to an existing trust be sure to consult with your estate planning attorney before doing anything.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney
Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney
Mr. Stephen Mendel is an attorney who focuses a substantial part of his practice on estate planning. Mr. Mendel’s guiding principle is to provide his clients with quality legal services tailored to each client’s specific needs and goals.
Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney
Latest posts by Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney (see all)
  • Thought of the Day - January 25, 2023
  • Thought of the Day - January 18, 2023
  • Thought of the Day - January 11, 2023

Filed Under: Wills and Trusts Tagged With: amend, amendment, change, restatement, trust

Other Articles You May Find Useful

  • DIY Dangers – Why You Need an Estate Planning Attorney
  • Five Questions to Consider before Appointing Your Executor
  • Why You Should Not Try to Revoke a Will Yourself
  • Questions To Consider When Choosing a Guardian for Minor Children
  • What Is a Pour Over Will and Do I Need One?
  • What Is a QTIP Trust?

About Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Mr. Stephen Mendel is an attorney who focuses a substantial part of his practice on estate planning. Mr. Mendel’s guiding principle is to provide his clients with quality legal services tailored to each client’s specific needs and goals.

Primary Sidebar

The Mendel Law Firm

Follow Us

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS

Blog Subscription

Subscribe to our blog to get all of the latest updates from our attorneys.

Plan For Your Future and Protect Your Legacy

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

HOUSTON

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.
1155 Dairy Ashford, Suite 104
Houston 77079
United States (US)
Phone: (281) 759-3213
Fax: 281-759-3214

Map

map

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Footer

The Mendel Law Firm

The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an
attorney-client relationship.

© 2023 Mendel Law Firm, All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys