Most people find passwords, wallets, and seed phrases too complicated to deal with, so they put it off. Or they count on a tech-savvy relative to figure it out later. That is exactly how digital assets disappear.
A Living Trust works like a bucket. If an asset never goes in, or nobody can open it, the bucket is empty for that asset. Paper accounts are usually findable. Digital ones are not, and the gap shows up at the worst possible time.
Why digital accounts get stuck
Families run into locked phones, exchange accounts nobody knew existed, and laptop wallets protected by a password only one person had. Crypto is the most extreme case. There is no customer service desk that will reset a seed phrase because a spouse is crying. If the phrase is gone, the coins can be gone with it.
Email, cloud photos, domain names, airline miles, and business logins have the same problem in a quieter form. They may not be worth a fortune, but they hold years of family memories and the keys to resetting every other account.
The five ways it goes wrong
- Family members do not know an account exists.
- They know about it but cannot get in.
- An exchange pays out to the name on file, which may not match the name on the trust.
- Seed phrases end up in a drawer, in someone's memory, or in a notes app nobody thinks to check.
- The plan mentions "digital assets" in general terms but never names a specific account or says who is allowed to reach it.
Any one of these can push a family toward Probate or leave an asset stranded with no way to claim it.
What a practical plan looks like
You do not need technical skills. You need one afternoon where someone writes this down in plain English.
- Make an inventory. List what you own, where it lives, and who can reach it. Crypto and conventional accounts belong on the same list.
- Name the person who is authorized to access your accounts. This should be written into your plan, not assumed.
- Point exchange accounts and wallets back to your plan. The goal is for what you own to line up with the Living Trust and your other documents, so the name on the account is not a surprise to anyone.
- Tell your family where the instructions are, not the secrets themselves. They should know where to look without the passwords sitting in plain sight.
- Review it when something changes. A new exchange account, a new phone, or a new wallet is a good time to update the list. Our related guide on where to keep your Estate Planning documents covers the paper side.
Working with a Las Vegas estate planning attorney
Gary Fales works with Las Vegas families to make sure an Estate Planning document set matches the way people really hold their money today, including crypto and online accounts. Gary and his team walk you through the inventory and help you connect it to your plan, so the people we love and leave behind can actually use what we built for them. A strong plan also names who can act for you if you cannot, which is where a power of attorney comes in.
Not sure whether your family could get into your accounts tomorrow? Schedule a free consultation with Fales Law Group.
