Louisiana estate law allows for several methods you can use to efficiently transfer your assets to your heirs. One way to transfer your assets is the creation of a living trust. It involves creating a legal document through which you name beneficiaries to receive these assets. You can serve as the grantor yourself or appoint a trustee to handle this duty.

How to establish a living trust

Creating a living trust is one of the most common activities that fall under the heading of estate planning. Your first step should be to choose the appropriate type of trust. If you are single, you can establish a single trust. If married, you may prefer a joint trust.

Your next step will be to make a full inventory of your property. This should include the items that you wish to earmark for transference to your beneficiaries. These can be items such as cars, stocks, bonds, jewelry and other heirlooms. Once you complete this inventory, you should also have all these items fully documented.

How to finalize your living trust

Establishing a living trust may be a wise move for individuals with high net worth. Once you have documented all your assets, you can then pick a trustee to handle the transfer to your beneficiaries.

You can choose to work with the trust yourself. However, you will still need to choose a successor to take over from you if you should pass away before the transfer is complete.

The final step will be to create the trust document and sign it in front of a notary public. Once this is done, you can put money and other assets into it. You will also need to take care of all the accompanying paperwork. At this point, your trust will be complete.