Are there living trust scams?

Unfortunately, yes. The Texas State Bar Texas Young Lawyers Association has put together a free pamphlet called “Living Trust Scams and the Senior Consumer.” You can download it here.

While a living trust can be a good estate planning tool for some, the majority don’t need one. If someone is telling you that everyone needs a living trust in Michigan or Texas, please exercise extreme caution.

You can verify that someone is actually a licensed lawyer in Texas by visiting the State Bar of Texas’s website and searching the lawyer by name. The website will also tell you if their license is active, inactive, or revoked.

Similarly, you can verify that someone is actually a licensed lawyer in Michigan by visiting the State Bar of Michigan's website and searching the lawyer by name.

Even if Mr. Miller is not the one to draft your living trust, please make sure you have it drafted only by a licensed lawyer to greatly lessen the risk of living-trust scams.