Probate Court Petitions to Confirm Assets into Trust Ownership (Probate Code 850) and for Modification of Irrevocable Trusts
Jan 01, 2018OUTCOME: Success in getting loose assets, including real property and large brokerage accounts, into trust ownership. Success in modifying existing irrevocable trusts to enhance their features.
I have filed multiple cases in the Probate Court in Santa Clara County to both confirm assets into the ownership of a trust after the death of the original owners of the trust, and to modify existing i ... rrevocable trusts to provide for asset protection for heirs and to remove the requirement that trust property be divided at the death of the first spouse in a marriage. The first petitions are called "Heggstad" petitions, and are used to gather in property owned by someone that failed to be titled into the ownership of their trust before death. These petitions are used to avoid having a full Probate proceeding with the resulting costs, public disclosure, and lost time in handling administration of an estate. The modification petitions are brought under Probate Code Section 15403 of 15409.