In California, the Superior Courts sitting in Probate hear and review all matters involving wills and trusts. Whether you are a named administrator, trustee, or beneficiary the governing terms by which your rights will be impacted will primarily be based on those that are setforth in the estate document in which you are named. Our probate and trust attorneys can tactically and strategically help you implement an estate plan, or defend your inheritable rights. Some of the estate services we offer are probate administration, wills drafting, trust litigation and drafting. Although, it is always recommended that you seek legal advice in preparing your estate plan, we recognize that many people may have simple, straight forward estate planning needs. In that case, feel free to use our Online Wills & Trust Document Service click " Here" and save 30% off of our normal attorney prepared Wills and Trusts. Call masonlawyers now 310-860-7798.
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Probate:
Probate Administration:
This requires an initial petition for probate to be filed with the court. Among other information set-forth therein is the name of the person who is requesting that the court appointment him or her as the personal representative ( Administrator or Executor) of the the probate estate. Usually, this process can take from one to two years.
Summary Administration:
Unlike regular probate administration, this process is a method by which the court is informed that the probate estate is of a nature that it does not require full administration, either because the value of the assets in the probate estate do not meet a minimum value or the for other reasons.
Probate Litigation/Will Contest:
Will contests usually involves a dipute over who should be appointed personal representative over the probate estate, whether or not a will that is being offered into probate is the operative document, or whether some other document validly supersedes the will that is being offered into probate.
Transfer Set-Asides:
When asset like real estate or personal property has bee transfered as a result of undue influence, fraud, duress or coercion exercised upon the decedent, a petition to recover that asset and have it deemed as part of the decedent's probate estate can be filed with the court.
Estate Planning:
Taking steps to clearly identify who is to inherent your estate can significantly reduce the chance that heirs or beneficiaries will later initiate litigation against one another. To effectuate this result, a No Contest clause has been widely and effectively used in wills or trusts so as to disinherit disputing heirs.
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Trusts:
Revocable Living Trust:
A living trust is a very popular estate planning tool that is designed to transfer wealth without having to go through the probate process. Although, it is an estate planning tool that provides probate avoidance, it does not provide asset protection.
Irrevocable Trust:
This kind of trust is often used in estate planning where there may be significant estate tax exposure. If used appropriately, there are transfer and gifting rules in the Internal Revenue Code that allow families to reduce their taxable estate by transfering assets to a trust that is irrevocable.
Life Insurance Trust:
Where there is a sizable estate tax consequence, a life insurance trust can help replace those dollars that must be paid towards a decedent's estate tax obligation.
Special Needs Trust:
Often times, especially in cases involving minors that are in need of ongoing medical services, a speical needs trust will hold assets in way so as to allow an individual to continue receiving public benefits, yet preserve assets that are in the trust to be used when there is a short fall in publice assistance.
Charitable Remainder Trust:
An individual may want to eliminate his or her estate tax esposure at death by providng that assets in a trust pass to one or more designated charitable organizations. Typically, the settlor of a trust will use the trust assets while he or she is alive, but provide in the trust that the trust assets pass to a charitable organization upon his or her death.
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