"Example of How a Proper Estate Plan Can Protect your Family Post-RV" Posted by Shybaby at TNT

By Danielle and Andy Mayoras    Aug 14, 2014 @ 11:15 pm EST

Because this trust reportedly transfers the money to them whether Williams was already passed or still alive, this was likely established as part of his divorce rather than purely for estate planning. It is not known how much money was in this trust.

Regardless of the motivation behind this trust, it (and his real estate holding trust) show that Williams took advantage of sophisticated estate planning to protect his loved ones.

 Many celebrities, like Philip Seymour Hoffman, feared using any type of trust. Williams had at least two trusts, and it appears that the Domus Dulcis Domus Holding Trust was created, at least in part, to minimize estate taxes.

Real estate holding trusts, when made irrevocably and drafted and used the right way, can often carve valuable real estate outside of someone’s taxable estate. With the $25 million or so in equity, this could add up to a substantial savings for Williams’ heirs.

Even if this trust was not set up with estate taxes in mind, if nothing else it could have worked to safeguard privacy for Williams and his family members. When used properly and not leaked to the media or revealed due to litigation, trusts allow everyone to avoid probate court and keep their affairs private.

Even non-celebrities usually prefer privacy, instead of having their affairs made public for nosy neighbors to see.

While the real estate, the children’s trust funds, and any life insurance will not technically be part of Robin Williams’ estate, his ongoing royalties, earnings from new deals over his image and likeness, and future releases of his comedy material would be managed by the administrators of his estate, unless he had previously assigned those rights to another trust or a corporate entity. These should add up to significant value.

There can be no dispute that Robin Williams was a comic genius, as his four Golden Globes, two Emmys, and his Oscar attest. The early indications are that he displayed some brilliance with his estate planning as well. While nothing can make the tragic loss of Robin Williams better for his family, at least he appears to have taken the proper steps with his legal planning to avoid the pain from becoming worse.

It’s a lesson that others can learn from. While few people need the sophisticated type of estate planning that Williams used, a revocable living trust can help almost anyone who wants to help their loved ones avoid the publicity, costs, aggravation, and pain of probate court.