Firm News

Tips for Choosing the Right Trustee Choosing a Trustee is never an easy task.  Who can step into your shoes and pay your bills and take care of you if you are unable to manage your finances? Who will take on the burden to wind down your trust after you have passed...

I have the discussion of who is entitled to a copy of a trust typically while I am meeting with the client to sign their documents.  The answer depends on if your trust is revocable or irrevocable. While the trust is revocable – typically during the lifetime of the...

We estate planners love to use acronyms and one that comes up in planning is CUTMA which stands for California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act – California’s version of the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act.  A quick explanation of what a CUTMA does is that it allows money...

I occasionally have the situation where my married estate planning clients are dissolving their marriage or I have a new client who is in the middle of a divorce proceeding and they want to do some planning.  There are several considerations that must be considered...

This question has come up a few times lately when a co-owner of real property dies, and it is discovered that documents were recorded without the knowledge of the surviving co-owner that changed how the title to the real property is distributed. A recent client...

The answer is that it depends.  When this question comes up with clients because they are receiving an inheritance or litigation settlement proceeds, my first question to them is what type of Social Security benefits are being received?  If it is SSDI (Social Security...

I see this issue come up often in my practice where a conservatorship is needed for someone, but the people who have priority to be appointed do not want to act or even petition for a conservatorship.  If there is no family member or friend willing to act as...

For the remainder of 2023, the old planning strategies for qualifying for Medi-Cal long-term care benefits are still viable.  But, if qualification is not needed until 2024, it may be best to wait until January 1, 2024 to apply for benefits.  The reason being that the...

A few years from now, in January 2027, a new law will go into effect in California, making it the fifth state to approve body composting.  This process is referred to as Natural Organic Reduction (NOR) and is less harmful than cremation or burial to the environment....

A trust administration that I am working on right now is illustrating the importance of including alternative distribution provisions in your estate plan.  My client is the trustee of her relative’s trust.  The relative had validly exercised a power of appointment to...