One reason to update your living will or trust in San Diego is to ensure your trustee or executor has authority and electronic access to digital accounts and assets. When a person passes away, the deceased’s assets are distributed pursuant to a trust or will (or according to the California probate code, if there is no will). The Trustee is responsible for enacting the instructions contained within the trust documents. The executor of the deceased’s estate is charged with managing the distribution of the deceased’s property.
Executors and trustees can be given broad powers to access the deceased’s financial accounts and to manage and dispose of property. The executor or trustee should also be provided with the authority to access confidential information and documents, as well as bank accounts.
California recently provided some clarity on this issue when it enacted a new law that allows a person to give the executor sweeping powers to access a deceased’s digital accounts and assets. This includes access to the deceased’s online information, accounts and assets, including digital currencies such as bitcoin. These changes are a primary reason to review and update your living will or trust.
The recent change also gives you the right to provide your executor with the permission to access other online information, including email, cloud storage, social media accounts, health records, content licenses, and databases. Further, the law also extends many of the same protections to an incapacitated person, principal under a personal power of attorney, decedents or settlors, and beneficiaries of trust.
These new laws are in response to the increasing percentage of people’s lives that are conducted online and the challenges posed after a person dies or becomes incapacitated.
Contact An Experienced San Diego Estate Planning Attorney
It is important to update your living will or trust to ensure that an heir or executor may access online assets. Your will or trust should specifically provide such authorization. These steps not only empower the trustee or executor to access all online accounts they can provide access to important security measures and passwords.
If you have any questions regarding drafting wills or trusts in California or other estate questions, our experienced estate planning attorneys can help you today. We invite you to learn more about the integrated tax, legal, accounting and business consulting services of Allen Barron and contact us or call today to schedule a free consultation at 866-631-3470.
