Focused And Personalized Attention Concerning Your Estate Planning Needs
Many people in California know they should prepare an estate plan, but they put it off. There are a lot of reasons people postpone estate planning. Some think it will be a lot of work, some believe they are too busy and some avoid it because they don't like to think...
Baseball fans of a certain age will remember Ernie Banks, the former Chicago Cub shortstop and first baseman whom many consider one of the best players of all time. Banks was the first African-American to play for the Cubs and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in...
Virtually all wills include a provision naming the person who will serve as executor of the estate. The executor is the person chosen by the testator to administer the estate, pay estate debts and taxes and distribute the assets according to the instructions in the...
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...