What is the difference between a will and a living trust?

A will is a document that transfers a person's property to others upon his/her death. This is called a testamentary document. It has no effect to transfer property until the testator dies. A living trust is a document that creates a fund of property, which is administered by the trustee for the benefit of other persons but with certain restrictions or directions on how the fund is to be used. This is called an inter vivos document because it is effective to transfer property during the person's lifetime.