Q: If my father said in his will I am to be paid first payment of a trust before 12/31/19 of the year of his death?
Is the above upheld regardless of when probate ends?
A: If the trust was created by the Will, such as a testamentary trust created inside his Will, then the trust may not come into effect until the probate has finished. It depends on the wording of the Will. If the Trust was created on its own, outside the Will, then the Trust should not have to go through the probate process to make the payment to you, unless the Trust has no assets and is waiting for assets from the probate estate. There are a variety of factors involved here, so the best way to get an answer to your question is to take a copy of the Will and the Trust to a local lawyer who can examine it for you and give you an answer to your questions. In addition, you should be able to ask these questions of the lawyer who is representing the probate Estate, just be aware that the represent the Estate and not you individually in this matter, so you may want to seek your own legal counsel. You know the facts of this situation the best so you are in the best position to judge whether you can ask this question of the lawyer handling the probate, or whether you need to obtain independent legal representation.
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