Service members have life insurance through Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance. If you have a living trust, name it as the beneficiary of the life insurance policy. If you have minor children but don’t have a trust, you should definitely create one and name it as...
A: Yes, as long as you are in possession of a key to the safety deposit box, Probate Code Section 331(a) requires the bank to give you access to do a “will search”. The bank will then log your identity as the requester, supervise you while you inventory contents, make...
A: Although Probate Code Section 6122 largely disinherits a former spouse automatically upon entry of a divorce judgment, the same is NOT true while the divorce is in process. Therefore, as soon as possible after the divorce proceedings have been initiated, you should...
California Proposition 19 proposes changing the rules for tax assessment transfers. A vote "yes" supports the constitutional amendment to: increase the number of times that homeowners over 55 years old or with severe disabilities can transfer their tax assessments...
Para muchos, parece como un sueño hecho realidad. Un lejano tío sin otros herederos fallece, solo para dejarte una magnífica propiedad frente al mar. Mientras que a casi todo el mundo le encantaría heredar la casa de ensueño después de la muerte de un pariente o amigo...
A: If you have children who cause you to lay awake at night wondering how they might waste their inheritance, make sure to tell your trust attorney. Evaluating the maturity, spending habits, and bad choices of your children will help determine how you should plan for...
A: Although a will is an essential piece to an estate plan, on its own, a will does absolutely nothing to help keep your family out of probate. Having said that, just because you only have a will does not automatically mean your estate will be subject to probate. For...
A: If probate is necessary, someone must come forward to start the probate process, which generally lasts six months to a year and consists of three main phases: 1) Appointment of the executor/administrator; 2) Administration of the estate; and 3) Closing of the...
A: Probate is an acronym that stands for “Painful Robbery Of Bank Accounts, Time, & Energy”. OK, so maybe it’s not actually an acronym, but that’s still a very accurate description and easy way to remember why it’s so terrible! Technically, probate...
A: Yes, without a trust that property is destined for probate, and here’s why: The current law states that if the fair market value of the property is greater than $166,250 - and it’s hard to imagine a home in the Napa area that is worth less than...
