The Ins and Outs of Probate
Probate is a court process set up to assure that upon one’s death, assets get distributed to the people in one’s will (or in absence of a will, to one’s legal heirs), creditors get paid, and disputes...
View ArticleEstate Planning: Property Taxes
It’s that time of year again, when homeowners pay their annual property taxes … Happy holidays! This year we are faced with two things we don’t want to think about in these tough economic times: taxes...
View ArticlePlanning for Your Pets
You may have put the rest of your affairs in order, but have you made plans for your pets? Hopefully, by now you have created a basic estate plan by doing the following: Signing Durable Powers of...
View ArticleThe Family Vacation Home
How do you successfully pass the family vacation home on to your children? As a foothills estate planning attorney, I have clients with beautiful vacation homes in Twain Harte, Pinecrest, Strawberry,...
View ArticleWhy Gay Couples Should Get Married – The Sooner the Better
We all have gay friends or relatives, whether we know it or not, and many share life with a partner. After a historic U.S. Supreme Court decision opened the matrimonial door for California same-sex...
View ArticleEstate Planning: College Prep – The Unexpected Kind
You get a call in the night. Your college-student daughter has been seriously hurt and is unconscious. You jump in your car and set out for the hospital, fully expecting to talk to the doctors, sign...
View ArticlePractical Tips for Special Needs Planning
In honor of “Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month,” proclaimed by President Ronald Reagan in March 1987, this issue of The ElderCounselor™ examines the unique planning requirements of families...
View ArticleSpecial Needs Trusts: The Current Law and Pending Legislation
Introduction Individuals with special needs often face “quality of life” challenges compared to those without special needs. Many times individuals with special needs require added expenses to meet...
View ArticleEstate Planning: California’s Take on the Right to Die
Brittany Maynard’s assisted suicide has again placed a spotlight on the right to die. Stricken with terminal brain cancer, the 29-year-old Californian moved to Oregon to take advantage of that state’s...
View ArticleWho Can And Can’t Inherit Your Guns?
Like many of us, you’re a sportsman. You hunt, target shoot and over many years have put together a valuable collection of firearms. There’s that .45 semi-automatic, a couple of deer rifles, a...
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