George Patton is considered to be one of the greatest military strategists in history. While his leadership and fierce determination are legendary, perhaps the greatest asset General Patton brought to the strategy table was his direct combat experience. When Patton devised a battle plan, his keen, analytical mind told him what should work while, at the same time, his hard-earned experience on the battlefield told him what would work.
I’ll come back to General Patton, but I’d like to turn for a moment to a subject that’s a little more in our wheelhouse: Trust Administration. Sometimes called the “backside of estate planning,” trust administration is where the rubber meets the road. Estate planning considers the “when,” but trust administration deals with the “now.” In trust administration, there’s no more planning for “some day.” Some day is here. It’s where our best-laid plans often face some tough realities.
WealthCounsel offers a comprehensive six-part series on after-death trust administration, “Effectively Administering the Mature Trust.” It’s a part of Legal Education’s foundational track and one of our regular course offerings. The course is offered at least a couple of times a year and session recordings are available. For anyone who is serious about becoming a more effective investment planning professional, this is one course I highly recommend.
“Effectively Administering the Mature Trust” will help you understand the importance and complexity of trust administration and show you how to wrap it all in a process that’s efficient and profitable. But here’s the real advantage and what brings me back to my introductory remarks about Patton: Attorneys with trust administration experience make better planners. Your knowledge and experience in trust administration will give you a fresh “from the battlefield” view of what works and what doesn’t. This newfound perspective will then inform and improve your strategies as an estate planner.
Again, I recommend you put “Effectively Administering the Mature Trust” on your to-do list. Think of it this way: You’ll be adding a new skill and, at the same time, improving a current one. Keep in mind these words from the General: “No good plan was ever made in a swivel chair.”
