Focused And Personalized Attention Concerning Your Estate Planning Needs
Any person, not only seniors, may face circumstances where she cannot handle daily and legal tasks because of an unexpected accident or health condition. A power of attorney may be insurance that a trusted person can step in and handle such personal matters.The person...
We've probably all heard of tragic situations in which a husband and wife are both killed in an auto accident or a plane crash. This can create estate administration issues if it cannot be established which of them died first. Fortunately, the California Probate Code...
In California, when someone dies without a will or trust their property is distributed according to the state's intestacy laws. If there is a surviving spouse, it all goes to him or her. If not, it goes to children in equal shares, with the share of any deceased child...
Many people in California postpone estate planning for the simple reason that they don't like to think about their own mortality. That is very human and totally understandable. Yet it is important to keep in mind that a solid estate plan is about much more than giving...
The death of music legend Prince at the age of 57 earlier this month took many people in California and around the world by surprise. Another surprise may be in store for his family members: at the time this post was prepared, it was still unclear whether he left a...
In last week's post we talked about the importance of providing instructions for the disposition of family heirlooms and other tangible personal property in one's estate plan. These items often have little or no monetary value but a lot of sentimental value....
When people undertake the estate planning process in California, they tend to focus on the major assets: the house, other real estate, bank accounts and investments. Too often they overlook the things they own that have little monetary value but a lot of...
When a person in Sacramento takes steps to shore up his or her estate by preparing a will, it might seem like a relatively straightforward process. However, many are not fully aware of what the terms of a will entail especially when it comes to what is covered by it....
In last week's post we discussed what assets are included in one's estate under California law for estate planning - and estate tax - purposes. One of the assets we mentioned in that post is life insurance. If a person is the owner of a life insurance policy, the...
When a person decides to begin the estate planning process, one of the first tasks is taking a general inventory of their estate. But, what assets are included in one's estate under California law?In California, a person's estate includes everything that a person...