Trust Me: If You’re Not Reviewing Your Trust, You’re Risking a Hot Mess
You did it—you created an estate plan and even included a trust? Look at you, being all grown-up and responsible! That tells me one thing loud and clear: you’re serious about protecting your family, keeping them out of court and conflict, and making sure your legacy lands exactly where you want it. Bravo!
But here’s the tea —creating a plan isn’t a one-and-done situation. Your estate plan, especially that shiny trust of yours, is not a crockpot recipe you set and forget. It’s a living, breathing, evolving strategy that needs regular check-ins to make sure it still works the way you intended when your people need it most.
Let’s put it in real terms: Would you pull out a pair of jeans from 2013 and expect them to fit like a glove today? (Unless you’ve been living on lemon water and Pilates, probably not.) Your estate plan is no different. Life changes—marriages, divorces, new babies, job changes, moves, asset growth, even law updates—can all impact whether your plan still "fits" you and your goals.
So, let’s talk about why reviewing your estate plan isn’t just smart—it’s essential. Because the last thing you want is your well-intended plan failing when it matters most. And trust me, I’ve seen what happens when people skip this step… it’s not pretty.
Stick with me, and I’ll show you how to make sure your trust (and the rest of your plan) stays sharp, relevant, and ready to roll—no drama, no court dates, no confusion.
Life Moves Fast—Your Trust Better Keep Up
Let’s be honest—life doesn’t just happen, it throws curveballs. The trust you created five, ten, or even just two years ago? It might be totally out of sync with your life today.
Got married? Divorced? Had a baby, a grandbaby, or finally ditched that toxic in-law? Bought a second home, inherited Aunt Betty’s estate, or started a business that’s now booming? Yup—all of those things need to be reflected in your trust, or you’re leaving the door wide open to chaos, conflict, and court.
And let’s talk people for a second—if your trustee is someone you’re no longer speaking to, or who’s shown they’re better at ghosting than following directions, it’s time for an upgrade.
If your life has changed (and whose hasn’t?), your trust better keep up. Let’s make sure your plan still fits your real life—not the one you had five haircuts ago.
The Law Changes—Even If Your Wishes Haven’t Moved an Inch
Look, even if life’s been cruising along with no major shakeups, the legal world doesn’t sit still. Tax laws, trust rules, and probate procedures are constantly shifting behind the scenes—and if your trust isn’t keeping up, it could totally drop the ball when your family needs it most.
Take the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017—it doubled the federal estate tax exemption overnight. If your trust was drafted before that? It might be working off outdated assumptions and missing opportunities to protect your assets or cut taxes.
And let’s not forget Massachusetts or your favorite Uncle Sam—they love to tweak rules around trusts and estates. That “airtight” plan from a few years ago? It could now have holes big enough for the probate court to waltz through.
That’s why I always say: Your trust is only as good as its last check-up. If it’s been more than a couple years—or a major law has changed—it’s time we talk.
Trust Me, It’s Time: How Often You Really Need to Review That Trust
Look, I get it—updating your trust isn’t exactly a Friday night thrill. But if you want it to work when your people need it most, you can’t just set it and forget it.
As a rule of thumb, I recommend giving your trust a solid once-over every three to five years, even if life feels status quo. Why? Because little things change—your assets grow, your relationships shift, the law gets updated—and you don’t want your plan falling behind the times.
Now, if any of these happen, don’t wait—schedule a review ASAP:
Marriage or divorce (yours or anyone you’ve named in your plan)
New kiddos or grandkiddos (by birth or adoption)
A trustee, guardian, or beneficiary passes away
You come into—or out of—a lot of money
You move to a different state (trust laws do vary!)
There’s a big shift in tax or estate laws
If life changed, your plan should too. Let’s make sure your trust still has your back.
An Outdated Trust? That’s a Legal Mess Just Waiting to Happen
Let’s get real: if you’ve got a trust gathering dust in a drawer somewhere, it could be doing more harm than good. Failing to review and update your trust isn’t just a little oops—it can completely derail everything you worked so hard to protect. We’re talking financial messes, family feuds, and probate court headaches. Sound fun? Didn’t think so.
One of the biggest mistakes I see? People forget to fund their trust. That’s right—if you’ve bought a new house, opened new accounts, or snagged some valuable assets and didn’t move them into your trust, they’re not covered. That means probate. And if avoiding probate was the reason you got a trust in the first place (which it probably was), then oops—you just lost the game.
Now let’s talk about beneficiaries. If your life has changed—new partner, new baby, messy breakup—and you haven’t updated your trust? You might be leaving your assets to the wrong people (hello, awkward). Or worse, accidentally excluding the ones you care about most.
And don’t even get me started on family drama. Outdated or unclear language in your trust? That’s a guaranteed recipe for tension, arguments, and possibly a court battle. I’ve seen it firsthand. It’s ugly—and completely avoidable.
Then there’s the tax piece. Tax laws love to change, and what worked five years ago might be a disaster now. If your trust isn’t aligned with current laws, your beneficiaries could end up with a smaller slice of the pie than you intended.
Here’s the thing: reviewing your trust doesn’t always mean you’ll need to change it. Sometimes, everything’s still aligned perfectly—and that peace of mind? Priceless. But you won’t know until you check.
Let’s make sure your trust still does what you actually want it to do. Schedule a review and let’s keep your plan—and your legacy—airtight. Because “set it and forget it” only works for rotisserie chicken, not your estate plan.
Don’t Leave Your Family’s Future to Chance—Seriously.
Let’s be honest: your trust isn’t just some stack of papers collecting dust. It’s your love letter to the people who matter most. It’s how you make sure they’re taken care of, even when you’re not around to say, “I’ve got this.”
But here’s the thing—if your trust is outdated, unfunded, or just plain neglected, it could end up causing more chaos than comfort. And your loved ones? They’ll be left sorting through court drama, confusion, and costs that could’ve been totally avoided with a quick review.
That’s where I come in.
As your Personal Family Lawyer®, I’m not here to slap a plan together and wish you luck. I’m here for the long haul—checking in, making updates, and making sure your trust keeps working as hard as you do. And trust me, reviewing your plan doesn’t have to be a snoozefest. I’ll keep it simple, I’ll keep it light, and I’ll keep it effective.
So let’s make sure the plan you so carefully put together actually does what you intended—when it matters most.
Book a plan review with me today and let’s give your family the peace of mind they deserve: https://go.20westlegal.com/meeting-scheduler
This article is a service of 20WestLegal LLC. We don't just draft documents; we ensure you make informed and empowered decisions about life and death for yourself and the people you love. That's why we offer a Planning Session, during which you will get more financially organized than you've ever been before and make all the best choices for the people you love. You can begin by calling our office in Sudbury, Massachusetts today to schedule an Estate Planning Session and mention this article to find out how to get this $750 session at no charge.
The content is sourced from Personal Family Lawyer® for use by Personal Family Lawyer® firms, a source believed to be providing accurate information. This material was created for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as ERISA, tax, legal, or investment advice. If you are seeking legal advice specific to your needs, such advice services must be obtained on your own separate from this educational material.