{"id":19890,"date":"2018-09-04T01:00:16","date_gmt":"2018-09-04T08:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?p=19890"},"modified":"2018-08-31T08:33:39","modified_gmt":"2018-08-31T15:33:39","slug":"trust-vs-corporations-by-kelley-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2018\/09\/04\/trust-vs-corporations-by-kelley-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Trust vs. Corporations by Kelley Way"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TrustToday we welcome a returning guest writer to Writer\u2019s Fun Zone, Kelley Way<\/a>, who is stopping by to chat with us about \u201cTrust vs. Corporations.\u201d Enjoy!<\/p>\n

And now for a bit of necessary legalese: Please note that this article does not constitute legal advice, and that an attorney-client relationship is not formed by reading the article or by commenting thereon.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Trusts and corporations are valuable estate planning tools.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Each serve as a way to keep an estate out of probate, because both are considered separate entities under the law.<\/p>\n

Anything they own is not owned by you, therefore it is not part of the estate (for probate purposes \u2013 the IRS has a different way of looking at things).<\/p>\n

But which one is better?<\/h2>\n

This is particularly important when dealing with assets that will continue to produce income after death, such as published books.<\/p>\n

The important thing to remember is that trusts and corporations are tools<\/strong>, with their own benefits and drawbacks. Which one is better will depend on your personal circumstances.<\/p>\n

If you have a business that is already incorporated, then it would make sense to maintain the business and create a succession plan so that it will live on after you.<\/p>\n

If your book(s) are used or sold by the business<\/strong>, it may be wise to transfer them to the business to avoid the risk of dealing with them in probate court.<\/p>\n

Edgar Rice Burroughs did this with his Tarzan book series<\/a>: the copyrights and trademarks are all owned by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., which in turn is owned by Edgar\u2019s children.<\/p>\n

Your books<\/h2>\n

If your books are not making a lot of money, you would likely be best off with a trust.<\/p>\n

After you\u2019re gone, the new trustee will step in, distribute all the assets, and close the trust. It\u2019s time-consuming, but relatively straightforward. It\u2019s also possible to keep your copyrights in the trust, managed by your trustee, with the income going to the beneficiaries of your choice.<\/p>\n

When you have books that will continue to bring in income after you\u2019re gone<\/strong>, and you\u2019re managing them as an individual, things start to get tricky. At that point you\u2019ll need to ask yourself some questions:<\/p>\n