In our first post in this Trust Uses and Abuses series, we discussed the dreaded word: Probate. In this post we will explore why the court-supervised world of Probate causes anxiety when it comes to using Wills. Why all the fuss? Well as you might imagine, any process that requires court supervision is going to […]
Did you know that Trusts didn’t used to be so widely used? In fact, the widespread use of Trusts for planning the transfer of assets from parents to children is a fairly new development. It wasn’t that long ago that everyone passed their asset on to the next generation using the centuries-old method of Last […]
What is an heir-at-law? What does that term mean in California under the California Probate Code? When people die intestate, meaning they die without a will or a trust, their assets pass to their heirs. There are other instances where we might use the term “heir.” For example, oftentimes, we’ll say “all heirs at law […]
In California, most of our Trust laws, the laws that apply to Trustees, to Trust Administration, and to the distribution of assets to Beneficiaries, can be found in the California Probate Code. You can find the California Probate Code by going online and searching Google for California Probate Code. One of the websites you’ll find is […]
It sounds like a relatively easy question. At least in my mind it does. But the answer is a bit more complicated. An Estate can mean a lot of different things. People often think that their Estate is all of the assets they own. And that is one appropriate use of the word “estate”. Probate […]
Trustees and executors share some similarities. They are both fiduciaries. A fiduciary is someone who is put in charge of someone else’s money. A Trustee is a fiduciary over a Trust, and an Executor is a fiduciary over a probate estate. The Role of a Trustee in California The role of a trustee may be […]
Occasionally we see cases where a parent leaves all of their assets to a child with the understanding that the child will share the assets with the siblings. For example, a parent may name one child as a joint tenant on a house or bank account, and then expect that the asset will be shared […]
When is a Will a Will? When the court issues an order saying the Will is valid. Before that time, the Will is just a possible Will. In other words, Wills do not take effect, and have no power to control the distribution of an estate, until the court first decides the Will is valid. […]
Easy, just go to the court in the California County in which your loved one lived at the time of their death and ask for a copy because every Will is required by law to be lodge with the court after death. Just kidding, people rarely lodge a Will with the court even though the law […]
How Can I Go Through Probate With My Family Without Things Getting Hostile? That all depends on what you mean by “go through probate.” If you are referring to the probate of a Will (or the administration of an estate without a Will), then you may be able to get through the process by simply sticking […]
