On Thursday, October 16th, Sharon Potter conducted a two-hour class at Pellissippi State Community College [PSTCC] on “The Importance and Flexibility of Trusts”. The two-hour presentation included a discussion on the many types of trusts and the legal requirements for creating them, with a focus on the most frequently used “Revocable Living Trust”. Students learned that for individuals and families owning property in another state, for instance a cabin, a beach house, or a timeshare week in one or more locations, a revocable trust can be an important estate planning tool that would allow such property owners to avoid the costly and unnecessary expense of multiple probate proceedings in order to transfer that property at death. In addition, certain key provisions to be included in trust agreements to address particular beneficiary issues were covered, such as children in a blended family, special needs beneficiaries, and spouses of children or grandchildren who could be unintended beneficiaries. Additional topics such as Trustee duties and responsibilities and “No Contest” clauses were covered, with sample language provided for review and discussion. Irrevocable trusts and the asset protection and tax-planning benefit they provide were also discussed. The class is a non-credit class offered as part of the Business & Community Services division of PSTCC and is one of two offered by Ms. Potter, the other being a two-night class on “Tennessee Estate Planning: Its’ Not Just Having a Will”.