People who are house bound due to age, illness or disability are often either unable or are severely limited in being able to go to outside appointments and may be deterred or prevented from doing estate planning. This naturally leads to procrastination during which time the person may either die or lose their cognitive decision […]
posted on: November 6, 2026
Read MoreIn California, generally, a trustee, “… has a duty not to delegate to others the performance of acts that the trustee can reasonably be required personally to perform … [Probate Code section 16012.” Important exceptions exist for delegating investment and management functions, which come with their own requirements [Probate Code section 16052]. Let us discuss […]
posted on: October 30, 2026
Read MoreTransitioning a business means preparing for a change in its ownership, leadership, or control, whether the owner plans to retire, sell the company, transfer it to family, or step away because of health or other circumstances. Mistakes usually happen when owners wait too long, leave important decisions unwritten, or fail to coordinate the business transition […]
posted on: October 28, 2026
Read MoreA trust is a legal arrangement where a person, called the settlor, transfers assets into the ownership and control of a trustee for the benefit of the trust beneficiaries. The arrangement involves one or more settlors, one or more trustees, and one or more beneficiaries. The settlor (aka, the trustor or grantor) establishes the trust […]
posted on: October 3, 2026
Read MoreMost California residents know about the Advanced Healthcare Directive, but very few have heard about the Psychiatric Advanced Healthcare Directive (“PAD”). The PAD is a standalone health care instrument that, “… allows a person with mental illness to protect their autonomy and ability to direct their own care by documenting their preferences for treatment in […]
posted on: September 11, 2026
Read MoreAt death, a person’s revocable living trust becomes irrevocable. It may leave inheritances outright (free and clear of trust) or it may transfer inheritances into one or more sub-trusts for continued management. Subtrusts are contained, as implied, within the same master trust instrument (document) as the original revocable living trust. A subtrust, therefore, shares administrative […]
posted on: August 31, 2026
Read MoreA delayed business succession plan can quietly reduce the value of a company long before an owner decides to retire. Waiting too long may lead to tax consequences, leadership disputes, financial instability, and confusion about who will take over if illness, disability, or death suddenly changes the future of the business. No one plans to […]
posted on: August 24, 2026
Read MoreEstate Planning requires sufficient consideration of what is going on both presently in the life of the client and their family and what is likely to occur down the road. Such a discussion is both broad and in depth and takes the attorney and the client into topics that the client may not have considered. […]
posted on: August 14, 2026
Read MoreMost trusts name family members, typically the settlor’s child(ren), as successor trustee, who have no relevant professional qualification or experience for the job. These non-professional trustees are still fiduciaries and as such have fiduciary duties and their attendant standards of care (standards for performance of duties). Failure to perform duties according to the relevant standard […]
posted on: July 30, 2026
Read MoreIn California, certified death certificates are essential for initiating estate administration, determining jurisdiction via the decedent’s residence, and managing beneficiary rights. These documents are required to transfer title for joint tenancy or real property, claim retirement assets, to claim Pay on Death (“POD”) and Transfer on Death (“TOD”) financial accounts, and to initiate probate and […]
posted on: July 17, 2026
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