Durable Power of Attorney form is a written document filled up by an individual, principal or a person appointing, designating an agent or attorney in fact. The durable power of attorney form is actually a contract creating an agent-principal commitment. By this document, the principal authorizes the appointed agent or attorney of any specified tasks stated on the contract or agreed upon with other parties like landlords, banks, stockbrokers and title companies on behalf of the principal.

Durable means that the authorized agent will have power to act on the principal’s behalf when the time comes where the principal experienced disability. When the principal encountered disability or became mentally incapacitated, this is when he needed a person to act on his behalf for any financial or business decision. That is why Texas legislature passed the Durable Power of Attorney act, to solve this kind of problem. Any decision made by the agent or attorney for the process of any transaction to the third party during the affectivity of durable power will not make the principal responsible.

This form contains words stating the intention of the principal on the agreement with the agent or attorney that the authority given to the agent or attorney shall be used despite of principal’s later incapacity or disability. This form must be signed by the principal and acknowledged in front of an officer assigned to this kind of deeds and to register or take oaths under specific department or agency. » Read more: Durable Power of Attorney Form

A beneficiary trust is an organization or a concept which provides wealth preservation, asset protection and dynasty trust, all in one package. It offers protection from estate taxes, divorcing expenditures and creditors and becomes irretrievable upon funding. Beneficiary is any person who is permitted to the benefit of any trust arrangement. A beneficiary can be a person, or even a firm or a company. It is someone who enjoys the benefits of your Trust assets. It may be your wife, children, grand children or charitable organizations. Generally, there are no restrictions on who may be a beneficiary. A beneficiary may be a minor, an unborn children or people under mental disability.

A beneficiary may be for an unlimited amount of time period. A beneficiary may include the original granter, but that would be self-defeating, as in that case, he will have to carry the burden that he was trying to get rid of. The basic reasons for beneficiary trust are, gaining asset protection, removal of probate, exclusion of estate taxes and gaining certain unusual tax advantages. Any kind of control by the granter will turn the trust revocable and subject to court discretion.

The trust is used for transfer tax purposes, which means that the property is owned by the trust and is not includible in the estate of the transferor. So, one can say that it is an intentionally defective granter trust. Although for income tax purposes, the trust is a granter trust, and the granter is treated as the owner for income tax purposes.

The beneficiaries of a trust can be of two types; fixed beneficiaries or discretionary beneficiaries. Fixed beneficiaries are the ones who have a straightforward and fixed right over the income and the capital. On the other hand, discretionary beneficiaries are the ones on whom the trustees must take a verdict as to the relevant prerogatives. Beneficiaries of a trust should be differentiated sequentially, based on the ones with vested interests such as the tenants for life, and those with contingent interests which include remainder men. They are also to be distinguished on the basis of bare trust and express trust. » Read more: A Brief Explanation of Beneficiary Trusts