The recent passing of former President, George H. W. Bush, has left many Californians heartbroken. One reason is because he appeared to suffer from what some call the "broken heart syndrome." This is because former President Bush passed away just a mere eight months...
Focused And Personalized Attention Concerning Your Estate Planning Needs
Michael A. Sawamura, Attorney at Law
Stan Lee’s estate planning issues
By engaging in California estate planning, individuals can ensure that they retain control over their assets for a significant period of time after their passing. This requires the utilization of many legal documents, but failing to do so can result in unwanted...
Will contests and no-contest clauses
Devising a will can either be relatively simple or it can be extraordinarily difficult depending on the circumstances at hand. This can include the number of assets and debts involved, the number of identified heirs and the complexities involved in the way that an...
Abatement, ademption and other estate planning lingo
Like a lot of areas of the law, estate planning to some extent has developed its own lingo to describe various rules and concepts quickly and efficiently. It is important for those who are in the midst of estate planning to understand what some of these terms mean and...
Ways to deal with hard assets in your estate plan
Figuring out how to divide assets is one of the hardest parts of estate planning. Many Californians choose to split an estate equally amongst loved ones, but even this can become challenging. Whereas assets like cash, stocks and bonds are easy to value and then...
What is a conservatorship in California?
Many people put off estate planning because they are afraid to confront the thought of their own mortality. Next to death, when it comes to aging, people usually fear declining health. Yet, the sad reality is that many Californians will see their health significantly...
When should I consider changing my will?
Life is full of changes. Some of them are planned for, but others are unexpected, as is often the case with the birth of a child. Other matters can also seemingly come out of the blue, such as spur-of-the-moment marriage or divorce. While these changes can certainly...
Attorneys utilizing trusts to meet estate planning goals
Last week on the blog we discussed the estate of famed movie star Burt Reynolds and how he utilized a trust to protect his assets for his son. Although it may seem a bit unconventional to write someone out of your will like Burt Reynolds did to his son, it can serve a...
Burt Reynolds utilized a trust to protect estate
Many of you probably heard about the recent passing of acting superstar Burt Reynolds. While news stories are peppered with remembrances of his best film roles and his contributions to Hollywood, some reports are shining a light on another aspect of the actor's life:...
Losing a spouse and estate planning
Thinking about your own mortality can be frightening. None of us like to think about when our time will come to an end, but it's inevitable, meaning that we all need to have our affairs in order before that time comes. For many people, this means engaging in estate...