Q. What is estate planning?
A. Estate Planning is the use, conservation, and efficient transfer of an individual's wealth. It is the process to consider alternatives for, to think through, and to set up legally effective arrangements that would meet your specific wishes if "some-thing happens" to you or those you care about.
Understanding our clients and helping our clients understand their options is our focus. |
Q. When should I start thinking about estate planning? Do I need it?
A. Almost everyone needs estate planning of some kind. You should start thinking about it as soon as you have acquired any assets at all and know where you want them to go upon your death. If you do not determine what you want to happen to your wealth, the state will do it for you at the time of your death.
Q. What are some common estate planning documents?
A. Some common estate planning documents are: Will, Trust, Durable Powers of Attorney, Advance Health Care Directives.
Q. How can an estate plan help me?
A. Estate Planning allows a person to designate the recipient of their wealth upon their death. It also allows you to chose a California durable power of attorney. It serves as vehicle in which a guardian for minor children is selected. It can provide tax savings. It allows for greater control over one's assets, who gets them and in what manner, after one's death.
Q. When does an estate become taxable?
A.
Taxable Year |
Amount |
2007 |
$2 million |
2008 |
$2 million |
2009 |
$3.5 million |
Note: This is all subject to change.
Q. What is probate?
A. A probate is the legal process of administering the estate of a decedent. It focuses on property which will be disposed of by either the decedent's Will or by the state laws of intestate succession.
Q. What is a Will?
A. A will is a written document disposing of a person's estate at death.
Q. What is a trust? Do I need a California living trust lawyer?
A. A trust is a legal arrangement between the Settlor (also referred to as Grantor or Trustor) and the Trustee that divides the legal and beneficial interests in property among two or more people. In the typical living (or inter vivos) trust with the help of a Southern or Northern California living trust lawyer, the settlor (person who creates the trust), trustee (person who manages the trust) and beneficiary (person who benefits from the trust) start out being the same person. When the settlor dies or becomes unable to act as trustee, the successor trustee with the help of a Southern or Northern California living trust lawyer takes over the management of the trust. The ultimate beneficiaries are the settlor's beneficiaries (i.e. those he/she would name in a will as receiving their estate).
Q. What is a conservatorship?
A. A Conservatorship is a court-overseen process where the court determines that a person is mentally incapable of handling his owner personal and/or financial affairs. This process continues with yearly or bi-yearly reports to the court until the conservatee dies or regains capacity.
The conservatee is the person who is cared for or whose property is managed by the conservator.
The conservator is a court-appointed fiduciary responsible for the protection of the conservatee's person and/or property.
Q. What is “quitclaim” deed?
A. Quitclaim deed transfers or "quits" (from the French “quitter” meaning “to leave”) any interest in real property. The grantor may not be in title at all, so the grantee cannot assume that the grantor has any real interest to convey. However, if the grantor were, say, married to the owner of the property, signing and recording a quitclaim deed in favor of the spouse would transfer any interest the grantor may have in the property to the spouse.
Q. What is the power of attorney?
A. A California durable power of attorney is when a person is authorized to act on behalf of person. The most common use are for financial transactions and health care decisions. California has one set of laws governing financial California durable power of attorney and second set of laws governing California durable power of attorney for health care decisions.
Q. What is elder abuse law?
A. Elder abuse law surrounds the physical or financial abuse of an elderly person, usually one who is disabled or frail. Generally elder abuse law is a wide-ranging area which includes financial or material exploitation, neglect or the willful infliction of physical or financial. |
