Wills & Trusts: The Complete Guide for Ohio Residents

 

MacLaren Law is committed to helping you protect your legacy, provide for your loved ones, and ensure that your wishes are honored.

 

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Getting Started with Your Estate Plan

This guide will help you get started on an estate plan. 

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Wills and trusts are part of a comprehensive estate plan.

An estate plan is more than just a document; it’s a roadmap for how you want your assets handled, your family cared for, and your wishes executed. Wills and trusts are the two primary tools used in estate planning to control what happens to your assets, your loved ones, and your wishes after you pass away or, in some cases, while you’re still alive. Both documents help you protect what matters most, but they serve different purposes.

  • Avoid leaving it to chance or the default laws of Ohio. 

  • Appoint guardians for minor children and choose who will manage your finances/healthcare if incapacitated. 

  • Preserve as much of your estate for the people and causes you care about—not state processes, court fees, or confusion. 

  • Provide peace of mind for you and your family.

What is a will?

A will is a legal document that states how you want your property distributed upon your death, names an executor, and (for many people) appoints a guardian for minor children. 

Ohio Legal Requirements

In Ohio, to be valid:

  • You must be at least 18, of sound mind, and not under restraint. 

  • The will must be in writing (handwritten or typewritten) and signed by you (or at your direction) in the conscious presence of two or more competent witnesses. 

  • The witnesses must sign. 

What Happens If You Die Without a Will?

Under Ohio law, the probate court uses a fixed formula to distribute your estate:

  • If you’re married with no children, your spouse inherits everything.
  • If you’re married with children from that marriage, your spouse still inherits everything.
  • If you have children from another relationship, your estate may be split between your spouse and those children.
  • If you’re single with children, your children inherit equally.
  • If you’re single with no children, your estate goes to your parents, siblings, or other relatives in a specific order.

This means people you care about, like a long-term partner, stepchildren, or close friends, may receive nothing.

Who Will Care for Your Children?

Without a will, the court decides who will be the guardian of your minor children. While judges try to make the best decision, they’re working with limited information. A will allows you to choose someone you trust to raise your children in line with your values.

What About Your Business or Pets?

Ohio intestacy laws don’t account for the complexity of small business ownership or pets. Without guidance, your business could be sold or dissolved, and pets could end up in shelters or with someone you wouldn’t have chosen.

What Does Probate Look Like?

When there’s no will, the probate process can take longer and become more expensive. Family members may have to go to court to be appointed as administrators and to determine how to divide your estate.

Why Create a Will Now?

Creating a will and an overall estate plan gives you control. It allows you to:

  • Choose who inherits what
  • Name guardians for your children
  • Make special provisions for pets, businesses, or charitable gifts
  • Reduce the burden on your loved ones

Trusts in Ohio:  What They Are & When They Make Sense

 

What is a Trust?

A trust is a legal arrangement where a trustee holds title to your assets for the benefit of your named beneficiaries (per your instructions). A trust can be created during your lifetime (living trust) or by your will (testamentary trust). 

Why Use a Trust in Ohio?

Some advantages:

  • Potentially avoid probate for those assets placed into the trust. 

  • Maintain greater control over when and how beneficiaries receive assets (especially useful for minor children, special-needs beneficiaries, or blended families).

  • Provide privacy (since probate proceedings become part of the public record) and may reduce delay/expense in settling the estate. 

Types of Trusts (Overview)

  • Revocable Living Trust: You retain control of the assets and can modify or revoke the trust during your lifetime.

  • Irrevocable Trust: You surrender control of the assets; more rigid, but may provide certain tax or creditor-protection benefits. 

  • Testamentary Trust: Created under your will and becomes effective only after death.

  • Special-Needs Trust, Asset Protection Trust, Charitable Trusts: These serve specific goals and should be carefully tailored with professional help.

Setting Up a Trust in Ohio

Key steps include:

  1. Decide what type of trust you need. 

  2. Inventory your assets and determine which you want to include in the trust. 

  3. Choose a trustee and successor trustee(s).

  4. Draft and execute the trust document (consult an attorney to ensure the trust meets Ohio law). 

  5. Fund the trust: transfer ownership/titles of selected assets into the name of the trust. 

  6. Review and update as your situation changes.

When a Trust May Not Make Sense

  • For smaller estates whose only goal is simply to distribute assets via a will, the added cost and complexity of a trust may not be justified. 

  • If you’re primarily seeking simplicity, and your estate is straightforward.

  • If your primary objective can be achieved with a will + beneficiary designations + POD/TOD transfers (Payable on Death and Transfer on Death).

 

Will vs. Trust: Which Should You Use?

Feature

Will

Trust

Takes effect

Upon death

When funded (living trust) or at death (testamentary trust)

Probate required?

Yes (for assets passing under the will) 

Possibly avoided for trust assets if properly funded and titled 

Privacy

Probate is public

Trust administration may remain private

Cost & complexity

Generally lower and simpler

Higher up-front cost and more steps

Control over distribution

Basic: divide assets among beneficiaries

Greater: staggered distributions, protection for minor/special-needs, etc.

Incapacity planning

Limited (you’ll still need a power of attorney)

Can include provisions for management during incapacity

In many cases, a combined strategy works best: You create a will (often a “pour-over will” to catch any assets not placed in the trust) and a trust for the assets you wish to manage more actively. A skilled estate-planning attorney can help determine the right balance for your family, asset level, and goals.

Planning Documents & Tools

  • Durable Power of Attorney (Financial Agent): Names someone to handle your finances if you become incapacitated.

  • Medical (Healthcare) Power of Attorney & Living Will/Advance Directive: Names a healthcare agent and specifies your wishes for end-of-life care.

  • Beneficiary Designations / Payable on Death / Transfer on Death (TOD/POD) Designations: Allow certain assets (bank accounts, retirement accounts, real estate, vehicles) to pass directly to beneficiaries without probate.

  • Guardianship/Conservatorship Designations: Particularly important if you have minor children or foresee a capacity issue.

  •  Letter of Intent / Personal Legacy Document: While not legally binding, this can provide personal wishes, instructions, and a narrative to guide your loved ones.


 

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The Ohio-Specific Rules You Need to Know

  • Ohio’s general statutes governing wills are found in the Ohio Revised Code Chapter 2107. 

  • Probate is often required in Ohio for estates that go through a will, unless assets bypass probate through other methods. 

  • Ohio no longer has an estate tax (effective Jan 1, 2013), but the federal estate tax may still apply.  

  • As with all legal documents, executing, funding, and maintaining the estate plan is key. Just drafting something is not enough.

  • Because the law and your personal circumstances can change (legislation, family dynamics, assets), review and update your plan regularly. A good rule of thumb is to evaluate your estate plan when you have any life changes, such as a birth, death, or newly acquired assets.

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How to Get Started (Your Checklist)

  1. Take inventory of your assets (real estate, bank & investment accounts, retirement, business interests, personal property) and liabilities.

  2. Define your goals: Whom do you want to provide for? At what age or stage? Do you have special needs, children from prior marriages, charitable goals, or pets? 

  3. Choose your key decision-makers: executor, trustee, guardian, healthcare agent, and financial agent.

  4. Decide whether you’ll use just a will, a trust, or a combination.

  5. Work with a qualified estate-planning attorney (especially in Ohio, since state law is specific).

  6. Draft and execute your documents in accordance with Ohio requirements.

  7. Fund your trust (if applicable) and retitle assets; update beneficiary designations; store documents in a safe place.

  8. Review and update your estate plan every 3-5 years or after major life events (marriage/divorce, birth of a child, change in assets/business, move to another state).

  9. Inform your loved ones where key documents are located and what your wishes are, while preserving appropriate confidentiality.

  10. If you own or plan to own a business (which many of our clients at MacLaren Law do), coordinate your business succession plan with your personal estate plan.

Estate planning is for everyone. 

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