If you're familiar with living trusts, then you know that one of the big benefits of a trust is the ability to avoid probate.
This is possible because the trust holds title to your property and assets, with you in control as the Trustee. When you pass on, your Successor Trustee steps in and maintains control over the trust and the assets it holds but the title to those assets never actually changes hands.
No title change means no probate.
But it's not uncommon for some of your property to never make it to the trust. Perhaps you purchased the property long after you created the trust or perhaps the nature of the property itself dictated that it remain in your name instead of the trust.
At the time of your death, this property is not protected by the trust and will be subject to the laws of intestacy, meaning the court will step in and distribute your property for you.
To remedy this problem, you can create what's known as a "Pour-Over" Will. This type of Will is designed to transfer any property held outside the trust to the trust upon your death. This ensures that all your property is distributed in accordance with the terms of your trust rather than at the discretion of a judge or a third-party administrator.
One caveat: any property not held within the trust at the time of your death is subject to probate, so even though the Pour-Over Will immediately transfers that property to the trust, you'll still have to go through probate to make the transfer legal.