Trust Creation Attorney Gainesville, Florida

Florida trust creation: what does the firm cover?

Trust creation is a focused subset of estate planning. Where a complete estate plan includes wills, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives, trust creation specifically addresses the structure that holds and directs your assets during your lifetime and after death.

Most Gainesville clients work with us on one or more of these structures:

Revocable Living Trust. The most common type. You retain control during your lifetime, can amend or revoke at any time, and the trust avoids probate at death. Assets retitled into the trust pass to beneficiaries without court administration.

Irrevocable Trust. Used when you want to remove assets from your taxable estate, qualify for Medicaid planning, or provide asset protection. Trades flexibility for tax and creditor protection benefits.

Special Needs Trust. Provides for a disabled beneficiary without disqualifying them from means-tested government benefits like SSI and Medicaid.

Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT). Holds life insurance policies outside of your taxable estate. Useful for clients with substantial life insurance who may face federal estate tax exposure.

Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT). Provides income to you (or another beneficiary) during life, with the remainder going to charity at death. Generates a current-year charitable deduction and removes appreciated assets from your estate.

Pour-Over Will. A short will that accompanies a trust to catch any assets not retitled into the trust during life. We draft these as part of a complete trust package.

Who needs a trust in Gainesville?

Gainesville's resident profile creates several common trust planning scenarios.

UF faculty and professional staff. Tenured faculty often have substantial retirement assets (Florida Retirement System, 403(b) accounts, university-affiliated retirement programs), spouse-and-children planning needs, and frequently own property in multiple states from prior academic posts. Trust structures help coordinate retirement account beneficiaries, spousal planning, and multi-state property.

UF Health Shands medical sector professionals. Physicians, surgeons, and senior medical staff at UF Health Shands and Malcom Randall VA Medical Center face malpractice exposure and benefit from coordinated asset protection and estate planning. Trust structures are typically part of the broader plan.

Retirees in Haile Plantation, Oakmont, and Town of Tioga. Gainesville's planned communities draw retirees who often have multi-state property ties, blended families, and significant non-retirement assets. Trust planning addresses all three.

Business owners. Local business owners across the technology, hospitality, and professional services sectors benefit from coordinated business succession and personal estate planning through trust structures.

Multi-state property owners. Many Gainesville residents own property in their original home state, a Florida primary residence, and sometimes a secondary vacation property elsewhere. A single trust handles all states; wills alone require probate in each state.

Will vs. revocable living trust: which one do you need in Gainesville?

Our deeper comparison is in why Florida residents are choosing living trusts over wills.

Trust funding: the step most people skip

Setting up a trust is only half the work. Assets have to be retitled into the trust for the trust to actually hold them. A trust document with no assets retitled into it is paperwork without effect.

Typical retitling work includes:

• Real estate: New deed transferring property from your individual name into the trust. For Florida homestead, careful drafting is required to preserve the constitutional homestead protection.
• Bank accounts and brokerage accounts: Account ownership changed to the trust name (or POD/TOD beneficiary designations updated to the trust).
• Business interests: LLC and corporation ownership transferred via assignment or amendment of operating agreement.
• Tangible personal property: Assigned to the trust via written assignment.
• Life insurance and retirement accounts: Beneficiary designations updated. Note: retirement accounts (IRA, 401(k), 403(b)) generally should NOT be retitled into a trust during life because of tax consequences. Trust may be named as beneficiary instead. This is particularly relevant for UF faculty and staff with FRS and 403(b) accounts.

Many DIY trusts and trusts drafted by attorneys who don't follow up on funding leave assets outside the trust, defeating the purpose. Our process includes the retitling work, not just the drafting. Our guide on how to fund a Florida trust covers the framework.

Florida-specific trust drafting considerations

Homestead protection. Florida's constitutional homestead provides unlimited creditor protection by value for the primary residence (subject to acreage limits). Putting homestead into certain trust structures can compromise that protection. Proper drafting preserves homestead while allowing the trust to hold the property at death.

Elective share. Florida Statute 732.2065 guarantees a surviving spouse 30% of the "elective estate." A trust cannot fully disinherit a spouse without their written consent (typically through a pre-nuptial or post-nuptial agreement). Trusts drafted in states without an elective share regime often need restructuring after the grantor establishes Florida residency.

Florida trust code. Chapter 736 of the Florida Statutes governs trust administration, trustee duties, and beneficiary rights. Florida has its own trust code, and out-of-state trusts may be administered under Florida law if the grantor is a Florida resident.

Trust situs and law selection. The state law that governs your trust matters. Florida residents can generally choose Florida law for their trust, but special considerations apply to trusts drafted in other states or held by out-of-state trustees.

No state income tax. Florida is one of the most tax-friendly states for trust planning. There's no state income tax on trust income, which makes Florida an attractive jurisdiction for certain trust structures.

Gainesville trust creation: timeline and process

Most trust drafting is handled on a flat-fee basis with cost certainty disclosed before engagement. Complex tax-driven matters may use alternative billing arrangements.

Trustees: choosing the right one and avoiding common mistakes

The trustee is the person or institution responsible for managing the trust according to its terms and Florida's fiduciary duty rules. Choosing the right trustee is often more consequential than the trust language itself.

Family member trustees. Common, especially for revocable trusts where the grantor serves as initial trustee and a family member takes over at incapacity or death. Family trustees are inexpensive but may lack investment expertise, accounting skills, or the ability to handle conflicts between beneficiaries.

Professional trustees. Bank trust departments, registered investment advisors, or independent trust companies. More expensive but provide continuity, professional investment management, and impartiality.

Co-trustees. Combining a family member with a professional trustee can balance personal knowledge with institutional capability.

Successor trustees. Even revocable trusts where the grantor serves as initial trustee need named successors. A trust without a clear successor trustee can require court intervention to appoint one.

Trustees in Florida owe fiduciary duties under Chapter 736 of the Florida Statutes, including duties of loyalty, prudence, impartiality, and accountability to beneficiaries. Breaches can result in personal liability.

Why work with Kelley, Grant & Tanis, P.A.

Brett Halperin leads the firm's trust creation, estate planning, probate, trust administration, elder law, and asset protection practice. Brett earned his JD from the University of Florida Levin College of Law and his Bachelor's in Economics from the University of Florida, where he was a member of Florida Blue Key. He's a member in good standing of the Florida Bar, which gives the firm statewide standing to represent Florida clients in any judicial circuit.

Full attorney bios on our attorneys page.

The firm's two offices are in South Florida, approximately five to six hours from Gainesville:

• West Palm Beach Office: 1645 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd, Suite #1200-3, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
• Boca Raton Office: 370 Camino Gardens Blvd., Suite #301, Boca Raton, FL 33432

Most Gainesville trust work happens remotely. Initial consultations and document review are by phone or video. Drafting is handled by counsel. Final document signing happens via remote online notarization (RON) or by mail, whichever the client prefers. Gainesville clients do not need to travel to South Florida for routine trust drafting.

Trust creation integrates with the firm's estate planning, probate, and asset protection practices.

Frequently Asked Questions