California Estate Planning Legal Guides (57 found)

Written by Peter S. Myers
How Do Trusts Fit Into Estate Planning? Trusts are commonly used because they are an ideal way to control property held by individuals or married persons. By using trusts, the grantors (person who created the trust) decide how they are going to maintain and control of their estate during their life
Posted in Trusts about 1 year ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Leslie Rubright Daff
Generally, the documents comprising a basic estate plan are a revocable living trust, a pour over will, an advance health care directive, a power of attorney for property management, and a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act ("HIPAA) authorization. Each document is described below.
Posted in Estate Planning 12 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Steven Matlin Greenwood
Many people think that “estate planning” is something meant for just the “rich.” This is an unfortunate misconception that all too often leads to mis-communication, hurt feelings, and unhappy surprises. Here are seven common mistakes people often make and how you can avoid them.
Posted in Estate Planning 8 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Mitchell Allan Port
My estate planning and probate clients will often speak with me about what they have heard regarding estate planning and avoiding probate. Retained by clients as their California estate planning attorney, they freely share their concerns about estate tax, planning and the other items listed here:
1 of 1 users found this helpful. Posted in Estate Planning 10 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Judith May Copeland
Many of us have pets who are very dear to us. California has enacted a law declaring that a trust for the care of an animal is a lawful. One can now set aside a certain amount, up to all of their estate, to be dedicated to the care of their pets.
Posted in Trusts 6 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by James Arthur Gorton
A trust may be thought of as a legal entity, much like a corporation or partnership, and is capable of owning property. The person placed in charge of the property is called the trustee. Generally, when you create a living trust, you act as the initial trustee of your trust, keeping full control.
Posted in Trusts 6 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Brenda Louise Godfrey Geiger
How Do You Find Out Who Is Good In Your Area? Choosing an attorney to represent you is obviously an important task. The decision certainly should not be made on the basis of advertising alone. There are certain questions to ask that will lead you to the best attorney for your family.
Posted in Estate Planning 3 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Darlynn Campbell Morgan
Anyone who cares about their family and wants things to be as easy as possible for their loved ones after they are gone or if they become incapacitated should have a Will and/or a Trust.
Posted in Estate Planning 3 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Henry Daniel Lively
This guide discusses the basic documents that should be included in your estate plan.
1 of 1 users found this helpful. Posted in Estate Planning about 1 month ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Erin Elizabeth Dixon
You may not know it, but you have an estate plan. Even if you have never taken the time to visit an estate planning attorney and have a trust or a will drafted, the state of California makes certain presumptions about what you would want as a parent in the absence of a specific written plan.
5 of 5 users found this helpful. Posted in Estate Planning 2 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Leslie Rubright Daff
Larger estates; those in excess of the federal estate tax credit amount or applicable exclusion amount ($2 million per person in 2008, and $3.5 million in 2009) may benefit from one or more of the following strategies and associated documents, which can be used alone or in conjunction with others.
Posted 12 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Diedre Wachbrit Braverman
Your child with special needs counts on you every day. What will happen when you are no longer there to provide care, resources and advocacy? That depends upon whether you create a customized Special Needs Trust. As the mistakes below will show you, you can make a big difference for your child.
1 of 1 users found this helpful. Posted in Trusts 9 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Mitchell Allan Port
The California Probate Referees' Association published its latest edition of the Probate Referees' Procedures Guide. The Guide is designed to assist those with California probate experience as well as those without experience.
2 of 5 users found this helpful. Posted in Probate about 1 year ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Kenneth Scott Jacobs
A Living Trust is an excellent tool to avoid probate. However, for it to function as intended, it is essential that all significant assets are titled in the name of the trust. In the case of California real estate, this is accomplished by executing and recording a Deed.
5 of 5 users found this helpful. Posted in Trusts 12 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Deborah Ann Malkin
Charitable Gifts If you wish to give to charity, a gift can be made during life or as a transfer after death. Gifts can be either given outright or put into a trust with terms designated by you. With proper planning, both lifetime and after-death gifts can be used to benefit you and your estate a
Posted in Estate Planning 6 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Darlynn Campbell Morgan
Before you hire a will, trust or estate planning lawyer, there are 5 things you’re going to want to know before engaging them to help you plan for the well‐being of your money, your family and your life.
1 of 1 users found this helpful. Posted in Trusts 3 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Kristin Leiko Yokomoto
If you have an estate with a value more than $100,000 and less than the unified credit amount (currently $3.5 million for 2009), then there is some basic planning that you can do to protect your estate and beneficiaries from having to file for probate.
Posted in Estate Planning 27 days ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Brian Lindsay Chew
Owning property as Joint Tenants and only having a in California can cost the surviving owner and/or your heirs thousands of dollars. Find out how to avoid this problem by simply changing the title of the property or better yet by creating a Living Trust to avoid probate and potential tax issues.
1 of 1 users found this helpful. Posted in Estate Planning 8 months ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Jon Mitchell Jackson
A number of jurisdictions in the United States have passed laws designed to allow self-settled asset-protection trusts...
1 of 2 users found this helpful. Posted in Estate Planning about 1 year ago. Jurisdiction: California

Written by Jon Mitchell Jackson
One of the primary purposes of a Dynasty Trust is to hold property for indefinite generations free of the claims of most commercial creditors and free of federal estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax (GST tax).
Posted in Estate Planning about 1 year ago. Jurisdiction: California