You may find this surprising, but in California, children do not have an automatic right to inherit their parents’ assets. And you’re not alone – a lot of people are surprised about that. They’ll call up our office saying a bad actor changed the Will or the Trust and somebody else is getting the assets, […]
There’s a difference between the lawyer who represents the Trust that you’re a Beneficiary of and the lawyer that represents Beneficiaries. A very big difference. And the reason there is sometimes confusion is because somebody becomes the Beneficiary of their parents’ Trust and they believe they can call the attorney who’s handling the Trust Administration […]
Should a Trustee have one or two attorneys that represents them in a litigated trust matter? Let me give an example. You have a Trustee after Mom and Dad have passed away and the Trustee is administering the Trust as the Trust terms state. But, maybe the Trustee’s brother and sister don’t agree with the things that […]
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 […]
There are two different types of lawsuits that Trustees have to worry about. One is a lawsuit from an outside party. That’s the type of lawsuit that can potentially be filed against anyone. For example, if a real estate transaction goes bad, someone may want to sue the Trust and the Trustee. With that type […]
Who is qualified to act as Trustee? As a basic requirement, a Trustee must be an adult over the age of 18. Additionally, a Trustee must have legal capacity, so obviously a person who is mentally incapacitated would not be able to act as Trustee. Beyond that, almost any adult can be named as a […]
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 […]
There’s a significant difference between Estate Litigation Attorneys and Estate Planning Attorneys. Obviously, by definition, one type of attorney handles estate planning and the other type litigates over the enforcement of those plans. For example, if your parents want to create a Trust, Will, and Durable Powers of Attorney, they’re going to visit with an […]
There can be no worse job in the world of estate planning than being a Trustee. It may “sound good” to be in charge of a Trust, but most people have little idea of the duties, responsibilities and potential pitfalls they are undertaking when agreeing to be a Trustee. What is a Trust Document? First, […]
How do you protect your parent’s assets from bad people? That can be harder than you think. If your parent has a Trust and you are named as the successor Trustee, then helping your parent may be possible. But most Trusts allow the Trust creator—your parent—to act as Trustee so long as they have the […]
