How a Trust Can Protect Your Partner (and Why It Matters)

How a Trust Can Protect Your Partner (and Why It Matters)

We talk a lot about estate planning for married couples, but what about people who aren't married? Whether you're in a long-term relationship, engaged, or simply living together, Texas law treats you very differently from married spouses when it comes to inheritance. And that difference can leave your partner with nothing if you don't plan ahead.

What Texas Law Says (and Doesn't Say)

Texas does not recognize common-law marriage automatically. While Texas is one of the few states that does allow informal (common-law) marriage, you have to meet specific requirements: you must agree to be married, live together as spouses, and hold yourselves out to the public as married. Simply living together for years doesn't create a legal marriage.

If you're not legally married and you die without a will or trust, Texas intestacy laws give everything to your blood relatives—parents, siblings, nieces, nephews. Your partner gets nothing. Not the house you shared. Not the bank account you both contributed to. Nothing.

Even with a will, there can be complications. Family members who disagree with your choices can challenge a will in probate court. These contests aren't always successful, but they're stressful, expensive, and can tie up assets for months.

How a Trust Changes the Picture

A revocable living trust gives your partner a level of protection that a will alone can't match:

1. Probate avoidance means no public fight. Assets in a trust don't go through probate. That means no public court proceeding where family members can contest your wishes. The successor trustee simply distributes assets according to your instructions.

2. Immediate access to funds. When someone dies, bank accounts are often frozen until probate is resolved. With a trust, your partner can access shared funds right away—for mortgage payments, bills, funeral expenses, and daily living costs.

3. Clear, hard-to-challenge instructions. While no legal document is completely immune to challenge, trusts are generally harder to overturn than wills. A properly drafted trust with clear language about your intent provides strong protection.

4. Incapacity protection. If you become incapacitated, your partner has no legal authority to manage your affairs unless you've planned for it. A trust with your partner named as successor trustee solves this problem without a court proceeding.

Second Marriages and Blended Families

Trusts are just as important for people in second marriages—especially when both partners have children from prior relationships. This is one of the most common estate planning challenges we see at our firm.

Here's a typical scenario: David and Maria are both in their 50s. David has two adult children from his first marriage. Maria has a teenage daughter. They want to take care of each other, but they also want to make sure their own children inherit their separate assets.

A trust can handle this through several approaches:

• A marital trust (or "QTIP" trust) provides income to the surviving spouse for life, then distributes the remaining assets to the deceased spouse's children
• Separate trusts for each spouse's assets keep things clean and clear
• A family trust with detailed instructions about who receives what and when

Without this planning, Texas community property laws can create outcomes neither spouse intended. Community property—assets acquired during the marriage—belongs equally to both spouses. But separate property—assets owned before the marriage or received as gifts or inheritance—follows different rules. Getting this right requires careful planning.

The Community Property Factor

Texas is a community property state, which matters enormously for unmarried partners and blended families alike.

For unmarried couples, property ownership can be especially confusing. If both partners contribute to a mortgage but only one name is on the title, the other partner may have no legal claim to the home. A trust can clarify ownership and provide for both partners in a way that's legally enforceable.

For second marriages, the distinction between community and separate property can create unexpected results:

• Assets you bring into the marriage remain your separate property
• Income earned during the marriage is community property
• The growth on separate property investments can become community property in some cases

A trust lets you spell out exactly how these different categories of assets should be handled.

What to Do Right Now

If you're in a committed relationship—whether married, remarried, or unmarried—here's what we recommend:

1. Talk to your partner about what you both want to happen if one of you dies or becomes incapacitated
2. Make a list of your assets and who owns what, including joint accounts, individual accounts, and property
3. Identify your priorities — Do you want your partner to stay in the home? Do you want to provide income for life? Do you want your children to inherit specific assets?
4. Meet with an attorney who can explain your options based on your specific situation

Protect the Person You Love

Estate planning isn't just about money and property. It's about making sure the people you care about are taken care of. If you're in a relationship that Texas law doesn't automatically protect, planning ahead is the only way to make sure your wishes are honored.

At Dickey Law Group, we help couples and partners of all kinds create estate plans that work. Schedule a consultation today or call (832) 521-4414. We'll help you build a plan that protects your partner and your family.