Those who live in Nevada or anywhere else may no longer have a close relationship with a child or other family member. In some cases, an individual may want to exclude that family member from an estate plan. If it becomes necessary to fully or partially disinherit someone, it is generally better to do so with a living trust. This is because a trust is harder to challenge than a will.
In most cases, only a beneficiary can challenge a trust. Almost any interested party can challenge a will by claiming that the person who created it did so under duress. Furthermore, the trust is a private document while the details of a will are made available to the public. Since the will can be seen by anybody, a family member who has been disinherited may challenge it to save face.
Usually, a trust is created years or decades before a person’s death, which means that the creator is generally of sound mind. It is also likely that a trust has been properly funded and used to pay bills or take care of other needs. Ultimately, it could undermine any argument that its creator was mentally incapacitated or otherwise didn’t understand how the document was structured. Those who don’t want to create a trust can use beneficiary designations to disinherit a relative.
Creating a will may be an effective way to transfer assets after passing. However, relying solely on a will may be problematic for those who want to disinherit someone. It is also important to know that the terms of a will don’t take effect until a person passes. Therefore, it might not be helpful to someone who is alive but incapacitated. An attorney may help an individual craft an adequate estate plan.