Wills or living trusts?  What is the better estate planning document?  If you ask me, as a living trust attorney from Orange County, both documents have their benefits.  Living trusts have become popular nowadays because of the ease in which … more

Many people put off making an estate plan because of certain misconceptions.  As an Orange County estate planning attorney, I have heard many misconceptions about estate planning, three of which deter people from starting an estate plan. 1.      Estate planning … more

When you prepare your estate plan, you essentially strive to answer the question:  How will my estate be disposed of when I pass away or get incapacitated?  For both contingencies, you plan ahead as to who will get what part … more

Estate planning is an essential part of ensuring that your family is looked after once you have passed away. Many people do not think about the importance of estate planning in Orange County, but having everything in place when it … more

Like income tax, estate tax generally increases in a bracketed manner. With the former, the higher the income, the higher the percentage to be paid in income tax.  The same goes through with estate tax. For California estate tax, the … more

Steven Jobs, the founder of Apple Computer, once said that “death is the single best invention.”  When he said those words, Jobs was already facing his own mortality while battling cancer.  Hence, he felt he had to act with more … more

Drafting a living trust is an easy and yet necessary processes that every person with assets will have to go through, but many people put it off sometimes until it’s too late. This is especially important if they do not … more

At least in California, putting the family home into a Revocable Living Trust essential to avoiding probate and making sure there is an orderly succession to the beneficiaries.   There are other reasons to transfer the home ownership to a trust.  … more

In a revocable living trust there are two groups of people.  The trustees who administer the trust, and the beneficiaries who receive all or part of the trust estate upon distribution. Often the successor trustees and beneficiaries are the same … more