Amendments and restatements

Estate plans change. Clients get married, have children, move states, acquire property, or simply change their minds about who should serve as trustee. When a document has already been signed and executed, changes go through the amendment or restatement workflow rather than creating a new document from scratch. For how Bancroft handles amendments versus competitors who charge per-amendment, see Bancroft vs. The Field.

Amendment vs. restatement

An amendment modifies specific provisions of an existing trust without replacing the entire document. The original trust remains in effect, and the amendment is attached as a supplement. Amendments work well for targeted changes: updating a successor trustee, changing a beneficiary, or adjusting distribution percentages.

A restatement replaces the entire trust document while preserving the original trust date and legal continuity. The restated trust is a fresh, clean document that incorporates all prior amendments. Restatements are appropriate when changes are extensive enough that tracking multiple amendments would become confusing, or when the client wants a clean start.

How to create an amendment

1. Open the household and navigate to the finalized trust document.
2. Click "Amend" on the document detail page.
3. The platform creates a new amendment packet linked to the original trust. A questionnaire appears with the relevant provisions.
4. Answer the amendment-specific questions. The questionnaire shows only the fields that are changing, not the entire original questionnaire.
5. Generate, review, and finalize the amendment. It becomes a new document attached to the original trust in the household record.

How to create a restatement

1. Open the household and navigate to the finalized trust document (or create a new document and select "Restatement" from the document picker).
2. Click "Restate" on the document detail page.
3. The platform creates a restatement packet. The full trust questionnaire appears, pre-populated with answers from the original trust.
4. Update any answers that need to change. The pre-population saves time; you only edit what is different.
5. Generate, review, and finalize the restatement. It replaces the prior trust as the operative document, preserving the original trust date.

Amendment pricing

Amendments and restatements are free on every plan. There is no per-amendment fee, no annual cap, and no tier restriction. Update a trust as many times as needed at no additional cost.

Revisions to documents that have not yet been signed (pre-execution) are also free.

What cannot be amended

Amendments apply to trusts. For other document types (wills, POAs, healthcare directives), the standard approach is to create a new document that revokes and replaces the prior version. The platform handles the revocation language automatically when you generate a new document of the same type for the same household.