Disputes between widows and their stepchildren are among the most common type of estate battles. These can involve will and trust contests, accusations of elder financial abuse, deed revocations and much more. In many cases, tensions between stepmothers and stepchildren while the husband/father is alive escalate into all-out legal battles after he dies. This can happen […]

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If you are the executor of a loved one’s will, you might have a challenging job ahead of you. The duties can often be time-consuming and usually include protecting the decedent’s assets until it is time to dissolve the estate and distribute the remaining property to the beneficiaries. If you feel that these duties are […]

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Your loved one passed away, and you had to immediately clean out his home. It wasn’t more than a few months later when you realized that while the home sat empty and you worked out the arrangements for it, someone else moved in. You don’t know who it is, but now you want to get […]

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One of the reasons that many Californians put an estate plan in place is so that their heirs can avoid probate. Probate is basically the legal process of settling an estate. The probate process in California can be costly in time and money. It can take as long as two years before heirs and beneficiaries […]

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Many California estate planning attorneys recommend that their clients set up living trusts. There are a number of advantages for your heirs if you place your assets in this type of trust while you’re still alive. If you have a relatively small amount of assets, there may be other ways for you to help your […]

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The Swedes have a word –“dostadning” — that literally means “death cleaning.” This unpleasant term refers to something that many people do as they get older and downsize to a smaller home or assisted living facility. It’s getting rid of things you don’t use, need or have room for. There’s even a book called The […]

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There may come a time when a loved one, such as a parent, is no longer able to care for him- or herself. As disappointing as this may be, you need to do the right thing by helping this person make sound decisions regarding their future. You may come to find that moving your loved […]

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