A big concern for all parents is making sure that their money is properly left for their children in the event of their untimely death. Many parents with minor children will name their children as beneficiaries on bank accounts or even their life insurance policies. Doing this can cause some major issues in the future. Children obviously cannot take title to property or manage money in their own name. If a child is named as a beneficiary on a life insurance policy or bank account, the children will not get access to the money but a guardian will have to be appointed by the court. The guardian will then manage the money. This can sometimes be a timely and costly process. The Court will oversee the guardianship until the children turn 18. A big issue is that the person who passes away will not choose the guardian, instead the court will. This can be of concern in divorce situations, where the passing spouse doesn’t want their former spouse controlling the money. The best way to plan against this would be by establishing a trust for your children. You would designate a trustee who would serve instead of the guardian and manage and use the money for your children. The children would be the beneficiaries of the trust and you can decide when the children would get your money. You would be able to tell the trustee what you use the money on and you might want to provide that certain gifts are given to children at special times likes birthdays or graduations. You can have provisions for a successor trustee in the event the first named trustee cannot serve. A trust will provide more flexibility while at the same time avoid the pitfalls of guardianship. As for the bank accounts and the life insurance policies, the trust itself would be the beneficiaries so the money is sure to go in the right place.