California Estate Planning And Probate Law Blog

When you are injured or ill, who do you want to have there to take care of you? Who would you trust to make medical decisions on your behalf? If you can’t make decisions for yourself, you’re going to want to have a health care proxy in place. A health care proxy,...

The legal issues you’ll deal with as you age are complex. There are many regulations and laws that will vary by state, so in the case that you move from another state to California, it will be important for you to take a second look at your estate plans. Elder law is...

If you are about to make your estate plan for the first time, you may have heard people talk about trusts. You might think there is only one type of trust. However, it is not that simple. There are several types of trust and various ways of setting up each one. Each...

In 2016, California introduced the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act. The legislation clarifies who can access your digital assets after you die and how they can do so. What are digital assets? California code defines a digital asset as “an...

Estate planning usually means that you hope to leave a legacy for those who live longer than you. It also gives you an opportunity to provide for those who depend upon you for their daily needs. Most people with children name a guardian in their last will so that...

You’ve finally gotten around to developing your estate plan. That’s something too many people never do. Sometimes, the thing that people dread even more than drawing up an estate plan is telling their adult children what’s in it. How much you tell them depends on...

You may have heard someone say that the best way to avoid an estate dispute is to make a plan, and this is true. Many disputes between heirs happen when there is no plan at all. This puts the pressure on the heirs to make all of the decisions, and they may not see...

If you have set aside significant amounts of money throughout your life both to provide for your retirement and to pass something on to the next generation, you owe it to yourself and the people you love to preserve that legacy. Unfortunately, it may only take a few...

You know that you need to get your will finished, but getting into an attorney’s office seems like a hassle. Can’t you just write it by hand on your own? Handwritten or “holographic” wills are legal in California, but only under certain conditions. Essentially,...

California doesn't currently have an estate tax, but that doesn't mean that you can transfer your property without anyone having to pay any fees, though. There is a federal estate tax that heirs must pay when they receive estate assets. How much a recipient has to pay...