Archive

The New Year is a time to look back on all that has changed in the past twelve months and what direction you want to move towards going forward. For parents who are recently divorced, or currently in the process of divorcing, that change can be a lot. When your day-to-day life looks so different […]

Difference Between a Living Will or Healthcare Power of Attorney Preparation is the key to success, and when it comes to estate planning, it’s the key to successfully following your wishes. Nobody wants to think about the time when they can no longer make health and medical decisions for themselves, but being prepared for these […]

Besides Wills, trusts are arguably the most popular (and commonly used) documents for California estate planners. Trusts allow grantors to pool assets into one place and write specific instructions for trustees on distributing those assets. The main reason for creating trusts is the ability to avoid probate, a somewhat long and expensive legal process.  Not […]

Glimmers of hope concerning COVID-19 have begun to show up here and there. While health professionals have predicted a challenging winter, you or your children’s co-parent might be looking at visiting family during the holiday season. After all, the winter holidays are best spent with warm family members and loved ones. Before you book those […]

Modifying a California Estate Plan If you're thinking of modifying your estate plan know this: No matter how carefully you craft your estate plan—Wills, trusts, powers of attorney—life is full of changes.  Anyone with a plan should periodically review their documents. This is to ensure their goals are still being fulfilled. If you need to […]

The destruction of the concept of time and our normal routines is but one major impact from the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, it’s probably hard to believe that the kids are already back in school. We understand how difficult the past year-and-a-half has been for co-parents across California, and starting a new school year […]

During the pandemic, many of us watched I Care a Lot, the at-times horrifying Netflix thriller about a predatory professional guardian, Marla Grayson. Marla made a career out of petitioning friendly judges to grant her guardianship of elderly people who supposedly needed help managing their finances and physical well-being. With the help of an equally […]

A lot was going on in the November 2020 election. One proposition that made its way onto ballots in California—and was narrowly approved by voters—was Proposition 19. This measure, which went into effect on Feb. 16, 2021, makes several changes to the state’s property tax rules. Many estate planners who own homes in California need […]

Even in normal (non-pandemic) circumstances, our lives can change so much from year to year. We can anticipate some of these changes, but life is mostly about adapting to changes. Those who have children with an ex understand the need for modifying one or more court orders that have to do with the children’s care. […]

A trust is an incredibly useful estate planning tool for many Californians. While there are many different types of trusts, one of the main purposes of a trust is to have a separate owner for assets that are placed (funded) into the trust. The trustee manages the assets in the trust and distributes them to […]