I have had a few cases recently where a person, who has now died, had been the beneficiary of a trust.  However, in all the cases the person who has now died never got their beneficial share from the trust before they died. So what happens?  When does a trust beneficiary require a probate in […]

For 20 years I have been telling people how to “put” their bank accounts and other assets into their trusts.  Some things, like real estate, are pretty easy. We just prepare a deed, our client signs it, and we send it in for recording.  Clients who work with full service financial professionals also have it […]

As a California estate planning and probate attorney I see both sides.  I see the planning process and I see what happens, after death, when the planning wasn’t done right.  Here is a top 10 list of estate planning mistakes: 10. Name your estate the beneficiary on your IRA, 401k, and other retirement plans. This […]

When I go through the estate planning questionnaire with a client I suggest they think long and hard before selecting their trustee. In fact, if they hesitate for a split second when naming someone I ask about it. For example, they might say, “well our son is probably our first choice… well… ahhh….”  The second […]

The “A/B” trust is a very common set-up for married couples in the estate planning world.  I should say there are different names for these trusts. I call it an A/B Trust. Others may be call it a Bypass trust, a credit trust or even a 1/2 trust. Whatever you call it a split trust […]

INTRODUCTION An estate planning attorney should be precise in their work. At times clients think we are over the top at our office when we re-do something. We explain there is a reason.  If something is done the tiniest bit wrong it could be a HUGE problem later on. TODAY’S PROBLEM Today I am helping […]

INTRODUCTION It seems a day does not go by without speaking to a potential new client regarding their parent’s trust not being properly funded. There are different reasons this happened but the end result is they need to hire an attorney. This blog post focuses on the interplay of the small probate estate and funding […]

I am often asked to help walk a client through a trust certification form. Either for a re-fi on their mortgage or a new bank account. After filling out 25 of those, or more, one year I thought I would post it here to help my readers know exactly what is needed. This is a […]

Not all trustees are independent and not all trustees are special… but the terms “independent trustee” and “special trustee” have the same meaning in estate planning. They are an unrelated and economically disinterested person with limited authority in a trust. Not all trusts will have such a trustee as the vast majority of trusts just […]

Each year my law school classmate, Steve Oshins, puts out a list of the top states to use for a “dynasty trust” and for a asset protection trusts. He just released his dynasty trust rankings. A dynasty trust is a trust designed to live as long as possible, from generation to generation, or a “Rockefeller […]