If someone you know had a Trust but forgot to fund an asset into the Trust before they passed, Vanguard Legal Group can help.
A Heggstad petition is a legal action filed in California Probate court to validate the intent of a decedent who failed to transfer an asset into their Trust.
The name “Heggstad” comes from a legal case in CA (Estate of Heggstad—1993) in which the court ruled that a written declaration of Trust, combined with evidence of the decedent’s intent to include an asset, was sufficient to establish the inclusion of that asset in the Trust, even if the formal transfer didn’t occur before death.
All Trusts written by Vanguard Legal Group include a Pourover Will stating that the Trustor intended to include all significant assets in their Trust.
If a client has forgotten to title an asset correctly, and it’s now subject to Probate, we can file a Heggstad petition to have the asset recognized as part of the Trust.
A Heggstad petition can streamline the Administration of the Trust by avoiding the need for Probate, which is time-consuming and extremely expensive.
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