Trusts, Estates and Probate

Estate Planning

We can help you plan ahead for life's biggest transition. An estate plan can help you preserve and control your assets during your life and direct how your assets will be distributed after you pass away. As a general matter, when the sum of assets held in a person's individual name exceed $150,000, those assets may only be distributed to the beneficiaries through the costly and time consuming process of probate administration. A range of estate planning tools can help your estate avoid this process.

While the idea of an estate plan may seem daunting or unpleasant, our firm's experienced and friendly attorneys will work with you to meet your unique estate planning needs and help you find peace of mind.

Specifically, an estate plan can help address these kinds of concerns:

• Who will inherit my assets?
• Who will make decisions for me if I get sick or can no longer make financial decisions?
• What if my kids don't get along?
• How can I make sure my heirs have quick access to their inheritance?
• How can I restrict the inheritance of an heir due to different circumstances? 
• How do I prevent family members from taking advantage of me? 
• I want to make sure my children from my first marriage inherit from me. 
• I want to have control over my house and other assets as long as possible. 
• Will Prop. 13 affect the property taxes for my home or rental property? 
• I want to provide for the care of my pets if I pass away. 
• I don't want my family to have to deal with the expense and delay of the Courts? 
• I want my estate planning wishes to be private. 
• How do I make sure my children are treated fairly? 
• I want to minimize the tax obligations of my estate and minimize real property taxes. 

Each client has their own unique needs and family concerns. Our first task is to get to know you, and we will customize an estate plan that is most practical and cost-effective for you. Here are just some of the estate planning tools that we provide based upon our conversations with you: 

• Wills 
• Living Trusts 
• Changes to Existing Estate Plans 
• Powers of Attorney 
• Life Insurance Trusts 
• Charitable and Family Giving Matters 
• Charitable Foundations 
• Charitable Remainder Trusts 
• Charitable Lead Annuity Trusts 
• Family Limited Partnerships 
• Estate and Income Tax Planning 
• Gift Trusts 

Trust and Probate Administration (After Death) 

After the death of a loved one, a family member or appointed representative faces the task of handling the decedent's assets and outstanding obligations, as well as the often distraught and grieving family members. Our firm provides multiple kinds of assistance with after-death matters based upon the individual circumstances, including:

• Probate Administration
• Post-Mortem Trust And Estate Plan Administration
• Will, Trust, and Probate Disputes