“My husband died and the mortgage company won’t talk to me.” This is becoming a common statement that I hear. Mortgages and the actual deed to real estate are NOT connected. They are separate.  So, for example, if a spouse dies with a house in their name the other spouse can often use a “spousal […]

Donald Sterling has a pretty large net worth.  I don’t know if it’s $2 billion or $3 billion or what exactly it is.  I think most of us estate planning attorneys would call him “high net worth.”  I certainly don’t have any billionaire clients at this time.  Anyway, he is probably busily working with a […]

Probate can be a long and drawn out process. These days it’s eight months and often longer.  Many probates drag on for a year or more. So when you finish your parent’s probate what should you  be thinking? It seems to me that’s a great reminder that YOU need a living trust of your own! […]

I often tell people that it MIGHT work out fine if they do their own will. Of course it might not. I like to tell people that we’ll find out after they die! Well, a recent Florida case emphasizes this sentiment.  The Supreme Court of Florida recently heard the case of James Michael Aldrich v. […]

I was reading the paper the other day and I saw an ad for a $499 trust. This blog post is not specifically saying that trust company is bad because I have no idea. That $499 trust may be the best trust of all time. However, seeing the ad reminded me that you really shouldn’t […]

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 […]

I have a new case where the decedent’s son contacted me about starting a probate. He wasn’t quite ready as he had other things going on in life. Well, last week he called, in a panic, because one of his mom’s creditors had started probate! That’s right. A creditor, in a California probate, can start […]

I read about the Michael Jackson tax dispute with the IRS on a legit website but figured I would get better dirt on TMV so here’s the link to that article.  Most of my readers understand that when a wealthy person dies their estate may have to pay an “estate tax” which is basically a […]

I recently talked to a prospective client. His story made me think of one thing, though I didn’t tell him in these words, IT’S TIME TO SOLVE THIS AND GET ON WITH YOUR LIFE! His story was one I have heard countless times.  Siblings fighting.  It’s not always clear what exactly they are fighting about […]

People often complain about the California probate code. Now YOU can help fix it! According to this GCN.com article there will be a crowdsourcing feature to modify and amend the code on wiki.  GCN is the only website reporting this at the moment. Read about it here.