A: Fortunately, this CAN be done, and it can even be done privately and without having to go to court. The important thing is that the surviving spouse and ALL of the beneficiaries of the B Trust must sign and notarize an “Agreement of the Beneficiaries” in order to...
A: A life estate deed allows the recipient (the “life tenant”) to live on a given property for the rest of their life. The life estate deed must identify at least two separate parties: one who is the life tenant, and the other who is the “remainderman”, which is the...
A: Not necessarily! Depending upon how the new deed is drafted, your daughter may legally own the ENTIRE home upon your passing and she may not be required to share with her siblings! Make sure to speak with a qualified estate attorney if you are in the process of...
A: You should strongly consider hiring an experienced trusts and estates attorney. Whether you are the acting successor trustee during the lifetime of the person who created the trust or after he or she has passed, you have a number of fiduciary duties to fulfill and...
A: Not at all! Since the Settlors (the name given to the clients that create the trust) are able to exercise absolute control, dominion and discretion as to all the assets of the trust, no separate EIN will be required, and you will not have to file any separate tax...
A: There may be times in life when it is appropriate to go with the cheapest option, and estate planning should not be one of them. Most of our clients tell us that one of the things they value the most is the peace of mind in knowing that their documents have all...
A: Under the California Probate Code, if a minor inherits more than $5,000, then a formal court custodianship must be opened and administered by the Court until the child turns 18, at which time any remaining funds would be delivered outright (with no restrictions) to...
A: A basket is actually a great way to conceptualize the way a living trust works! Think of a living trust as a basket with a set of instructions on the inside. This set of instructions declares what is to happen with all of the assets inside the basket upon the death...
A: You should also specify in the trust document who the contingent beneficiaries of your assets will be! If you don’t specify the contingent beneficiary, the Probate Code will decide who receives the deceased beneficiary’s inheritance - the default rule is known as...
A: Section 254 of the Probate Code states that any person who feloniously and intentionally kills someone is not entitled to benefit monetarily in any way from the death they intentionally caused. The most famous example of this in California was the matter of Scott...
