Gun trust estate planning

[Christopher]

I recently read an article about creating a gun trust as part of estate planning to ensure any weapons do not go to family members who should not have them. It also avoids them going into probable if one does not have a proper will. The flip side concern is that a few more people will know about my gun … any thought from the USCCA legal professionals?

[Craig6]

Have not done this yet, very interested in the concept.

Cheers,

Craig6

[Zee]

@Robert_2Swords posted some excellent information about it in this conversation - a description of what he’s got set up:

Doctor Questions about Gun Ownership

I am a firearms instructor and was just recently certified as a USCCA Instructor. So you might guess that I own a lot of firearms. But you would be wrong. I actually do not own a single firearm. That’s right – not a single handgun, not a single shotgun, not a single rifle. So now, you’re looking a little puzzled – wondering why I’d be a firearms instructor for the last 20 years and not own a single firearm. A few years ago, I found a wonderful attorney in Austin, TX whose specialty it is t…

and some additional details with links to his lawyer’s FAQ on it:

@Robert_2Swords

For a thorough and detailed desription of the process, see my attorney’s FAQ on the subject. Meanwhile, you should know that not all NFA trusts are created equal. Make sure you get a competent attorney who knows how to best protect your rights. (By the way, the FAQ gives an interesting scenario of what could happen if a silencer is registed in the husband’s name and he leaves it at home where his wife has access to it. That immediately puts her in danger of a felony. So you shouldread the article to make sure your family is properly protected. And by the way, the registration of silencers is just stupid in my opinion. It should just be looked at as hearing protection.

Interested to see if USCCA has any resources on it … @Dawn?

[Craig6]

Good reading there. I wonder if Texas NFA Trust would work in Virginia, as in can I get the trust from there living here?

Cheers,

Craig6

[Raymond]

This stirred some movement on my part to rethink my living will to specifically include my gun collection and specify what goes where. Great idea for the post. Thanks.

[Robert_2Swords]

James Willi can take your call and tell you whether his form is valid in Virginia. I believe he creates a NFA trust that would work in Virginia, but you can clarify it with him. https://www.myguntrust.com/

[Robert_2Swords]

Just to clarify…

Your gun trust is a legal document that creates a corporate entity. That document must be filed with the State in which you live. However, you do NOT have to give the State of list of firearms in the trust. But the trust MUST have some kind of asset. So my actual trust document has a $1 bill attached to it. This represents the “asset” around which the trust is formed. The document is a private document after that point. You can transfer asssets into the trust. And you can designate new beneficiaries without having to update the State’s information. So the State will have a record that you have a trust, but done properly, they will not have a record of your firearms. For this reason, it is certainly worth the $300 it takes to have a trust formed. It is worth having a NFA trust just to keep the legal system from deciding what happens to your firearms after you die. And if you do want / need to apply for an ATF tax stamp, it still makes it a faster / easier process (but plan on 11-15 months for the ATF to let you buy a silencer to protect your hearing).