I have written before about Heggstad petitions.  In particular you can see my formal article, with case background information, on my website at https://californiaprobate.info/probate/petition-related-to-trusts As stated there a Heggstad petition is a way to get property (real and personal) into your California trust AFTER death.  It can be used for almost any assets: bank accounts, stock […]

On TV an attorney just picks up the file and heads to the Courthouse right? They usually have no other cases so it makes it very easy to focus on that one case, with one opposing attorney, the one Judge, the one court room at the one courthouse.  In real life attorneys have a lot […]

When Michael Jackson died I posted the following: “Michael Jackson has been dead less than 24 hours and there are dozens of articles on the internet about this already.  He is in debt $400 million or $500 million or who knows how much….  However, he has assets… worth $500 million or $1 billion… or really […]

Currently you can pass up to $100,000 after death without going through probate. California Probate Code 13100 provides the backbone of that. It’s pasted below. I have heard the California legislature is changing that to $150,000 effective January 1, 2012. Let’s see…. California Probate Code Section 13100 Excluding the property described in Section 13050, if […]

My last couple of posts have been about some simple options you can use if don’t have time to hire a California estate planning attorney to properly write your will. They are fine options but, as stated, you won’t know until after death if they worked out ok. Definitely having a specialist do your will […]

The California probate Court system provides for a fairly uniform application of the laws of California from county to county. The probate Court is part of the Superior Court and in some counties is heard together with other matters. In the larger counties the probate Court typically has it’s own calendar, own Court room and […]

Currently the FDIC insurance limits have been raised to $250,000 per BANK (not per account). I will post the trust rules later in the week as they are a little different. Check out fdic.gov for the latest information about FDIC insurance. It’s a huge part of estate planning, trust and probate law so I am […]

Each July I get the opportunity to guest lecture at the income tax class taught by Folsom, CPA, Daniel Staszak. My notes from this year’s presentation are below for your review. July 14, 2011   Dan Staszak’s CFP – INCOME TAX class    60 Minutes – Probate/Trust Admin   I. Introduction A. JBP – 17th year – Cert […]

As I went through my outline from my 2008 presentation, for NBI, on California probate law I realized I had pretty extensive materials on surviving spousal rights. I hope you find it interesting reading my outline!  I find any topic that I present to a room full of attorneys, like this one, is always a […]

I have told you before that all answers are in the probate code, right!?  Most probate cases allow for simple sales of real estate that do not require Court confirmation before the sale. However, in some cases Court confirmation is required before the sale. What do you do then?  Well, I have a case right […]