Wills and Trusts

A Will is a legal document by which a person (the testator), names one or more persons (the executor) to manage his / her estate and provides for the transfer of his property at death. Making a Will is essential if you want to be sure of leaving your property and possessions to your chosen beneficiaries.

A Trust allows you to transfer property to a third person who will hold and use the property for a beneficiary of your choice in accordance with the terms of the trust.

A will only goes into effect when you die, while a trust takes effect as soon as it’s signed and your assets are transferred into the name of the trust. To this end, a will directs who will receive your property at your death, and a trust specifies how your property will be distributed before your death, at your death, or at a specified time after death. This is what keeps your family out of court in the event of your incapacity or death.

A will covers any property solely owned in your name. A will does not cover property co-owned by you with others listed as joint tenants, nor does your will cover assets that pass directly to a beneficiary by contract, such as life insurance.

Trusts, on the other hand, cover property that has been transferred, or “funded,” to the trust or where the trust is the named beneficiary of an account or policy. That said, if an asset hasn’t been properly funded to the trust, it won’t be covered, so it’s critical to work with us as your Family Lawyer to ensure the trust is properly funded.

We advise our non-resident Indian clients as to how to structure their estate and affairs so that after their lifetime, the estate is transferred to those persons whom our clients want to be beneficiaries.

Our wills and trusts practice group provides expert advice on all aspects of estate planning in India. We make wills for high net worth individuals and advise them on how the property shall be transferred after their lifetime. We also create trusts which may continue after the lifetime of our client. Apart from these, our wills and trusts practice group provides legal advice while working in consonance with our taxation experts as to how to reduce tax implications on NRI. We also help our NRI clients situate outside India in cross-border succession where some of the property is in India and the rest of the property is outside India.