Probate & Trust Law Section Conference Manual ... - Minnesota CLE

1. Website. The fiduciary should complete the online process at:
https://sa.www4.irs.gov/modiein/individual/index.jsp. The fiduciary will need to
provide his or her social security number as the “responsible party.” Once the
application is completed, the website will generate a letter with the EIN.
2. Phone. The EIN can also be obtained by phone. In order to proceed in this manner,
the fiduciary should first complete and sign IRS Form SS-4. The completed Form SS-
4 should then be faxed to the IRS at 216-516-3990. Once the Form SS-4 has been
faxed to the IRS, contact the IRS at 866-816-2065 to obtain the EIN.
IDENTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF ASSETS
In order for surviving family members to understand the probate and trust administration
process, I find it helpful to categorize all the decedent’s assets into one of three different
categories: (1) trust assets; (2) other non-probate assets; and (3) probate assets. Before providing
a definitive overview to the surviving family members as to how assets will actually pass, you
should collect information on current asset ownership. 5 Once you obtain this information, you
will be in a position to determine the steps necessary to transfer all the decedent’s assets.
1. Trust Assets
First, assets may be owned by a trust. 6 An asset is not necessarily owned by a trust if a decedent
had created a trust; the asset must have been re-titled into the trust during lifetime. You can
confirm that an asset was owned by a trust, or was payable to a trust following the decedent’s
death, by examining title to the asset. For example, the real estate certificate of title or a bank or
brokerage account statement will indicate whether an asset is owned by a trust.
The trust agreement will include provisions for the administration of the trust following the death
of the decedent, including the appointment of a trustee, the person or entity responsible for the
administration of the trust. Among other duties, the trustee is responsible for the collection,
inventory, and preservation of these assets, as further summarized below. Common types of
assets that are owned by a trust, or payable to a trust following death, include:
o Real estate
o Marketable securities accounts
o Life insurance policies
5 Particularly where the decedent or the decedent’s family members were not receiving the assistance of an attorney
before death, it is not uncommon for assets to be legally titled differently from the understanding of surviving family
members.
6 The trust may have been a “revocable trust” (also sometimes referred to as a “living trust” or a “revocable living
trust”) in which the trust had been created by the decedent and was subject to revision by the decedent during his or
her lifetime. Alternatively, the trust may have been owned by an “irrevocable trust.”
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