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Myth or Fact? It is acceptable to leave an inheritance directly to minors in your Last Will and Testament.
This is a MYTH!
In Massachusetts, a minor is defined as anyone who has not yet reached the age of majority, which is eighteen (18) years old. A minor cannot inherit property in Massachusetts; a parent or guardian must claim the property on the minor’s behalf. Unless the Last Will and Testament explicitly allows for a parent or guardian to accept property on the minor’s behalf, a separate court action called a “Conservatorship” must be filed by the parent or guardian to properly accept and manage the property until the child turns eighteen (18) years old.
With a Conservatorship, the property management arrangement ends the day the minor turns eighteen (18) years old. The brand-new adult can then make all management decisions over the property, including when withdrawals happen and how the funds are spent. Essentially this is handing a blank check to an eighteen (18) year old. Many of our children are still immature at the age of eighteen (18) years old, they cannot handle the responsibility of managing property or finances and may not manage the money appropriately. They can also be more susceptible than a mature adult to coercion and manipulation regarding spending, gifting, and lending.
The above situation can be avoided in a variety of ways. First, making sure your Last Will and Testament contains the proper language allowing for parents or guardians to inherit on a minor’s behalf. This proper language can alleviate the need for a separate Conservatorship proceeding in the Probate Court. However, this does nothing to protect the assets past the minor’s eighteenth birthday. To protect the property past the age of eighteen (18) years old, a trust must be established, either within your Last Will and Testament or within a separate Revocable or Irrevocable Trust which will require the least amount of probate court costs, time and interference.
An estate planning attorney, when either drafting or reviewing your estate plan, can counsel you on which method makes the most sense for you, your family situation, and the goals for your estate distribution.
About the Author: Patricia Bloom-McDonald Esq. is an attorney in Westport, Massachusetts. She has been practicing estate planning, probate, and elder law in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for over twenty (20) years. If this article has sparked questions for you, please feel free to reach out via phone (508) 646-9888 or email McBloomLaw@McBloomLaw.com to schedule a time to discuss your unique situation.