Tustin Estate Planning Law Blog

Need to update wills cannot be overstated

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Wills on Wednesday, May 15, 2019.

Another high-profile death has occurred and may serve as an alert to the public for not only the need for an estate plan in California, but also the need to keep such a plan current. Failure to update wills and other documents can have unintended consequences. John Singleton, a film director best known for directing the movie "Boyz n the Hood" died recently due to complications following a stroke. He was only 51.

Mr. Singleton had created a will in 1993. At the time, he had one child, a daughter named Justice. The will specified that his entire estate go to Justice in the event of his death. Since 1993, he had fathered six additional children but failed to update his will to include them.

Estate planning is an ongoing task

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Tax on Friday, May 3, 2019.

For a variety of reasons, most people in California and elsewhere do not have a will. Estate planning is a personal and challenging task, so once a will is in place, it may seem like a victory. The testator -- the person who writes the will -- may be surprised to know that a will is a document that requires frequent reviews and revisions. In fact, there are specific times when updating one's will is critical.

No one's life remains stagnant. After writing a will, it is likely that things will change and the terms of the will may no longer be relevant. For example, a testator may name an heir who passes away after the will is signed. A testator who remarries after a spouse dies but fails to update the will may leave the new spouse with a frustrating and expensive legal battle to claim his or her fair share of the estate.

Estate planning is not just about money

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Tax on Wednesday, May 1, 2019.

Contemplating one's death is not a pastime most people wish to engage in. But failing to contemplate and plan on what happens to the property and people a person cares about in California can have serious unintended consequences. These can be avoided by taking some time to determine one's final wishes through estate planning.

Creating an estate plan should not be limited to financial and tax considerations. A person should determine if a will alone can meet one's needs. Medical directives may need to be considered in the event that one is not able to speak or communicate one's wishes, and this could apply to financial decisions as well. A will by itself is only applicable after a person's death. Other instruments of an estate plan can include trusts set up for charitable contributions or care of minor children.

Women, wills and important estate planning steps

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Wills on Tuesday, April 23, 2019.

It is impossible to predict the future, but there are certain steps a person can take to have legal and financial protections in place. Through wills and other estate planning documents, a person can outline wishes, plan for future medical needs and even make plans to care for loved ones. No two estate plans are the same, and women sometimes have different needs than men.

First of all, women typically live longer then men. When drafting an estate plan, a California woman may need to think about this possibility and make plans in case she lives longer than her husband. Additionally, women are more likely to end up caring for aging or sick parents. There are specific estate planning tools a person can utilize in case they find themselves in the role of caretaker one day.

Estate assets belonging to the elderly may require protection

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Administration & Probate on Friday, April 19, 2019.

The sandwich generation is becoming a very popular term in the 21st century in California and elsewhere in the country. It refers to baby-boomers who are attempting to tend to the needs of adult children, aging parents and their own impending retirement years all at the same time. Needless to say, this generation is spread very thin across these three tasks. One area that may require extra attention is protecting the estate assets of their aging parents.

Financial abuse of the elderly is a real and growing issue. Many people faced with caring for parents and children are hiring caretakers for their elderly parents, which, sadly, can end in one's parents estate being exploited to benefit the caregiver. One such case occurred recently in Alameda.

Protecting assets for a special needs child

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Tax on Monday, April 15, 2019.

Estate planning in California can be complex and tricky in the best of situations but it takes on added gravity when a child with special needs is involved. A couple of different variables come into play when one is protecting assets in the interest of long-term care for a special needs child. There are options that can simplify the situation.

Planning for the future of a special needs child may find parents wishing they could have the gift of seeing what the future holds, even if only briefly. Not knowing what the future holds and not being fully able to predict a child's needs can make financial planning for the future a challenge. It becomes necessary to put together an estate plan with as much built-in flexibility as possible.

Estate planning and families can be a difficult mix

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Tax on Friday, March 29, 2019.

Families can be complicated, particularly extended families and new families. Divorce, re-marriage and children with a second spouse can all serve to complicate family dynamics, which can, in turn, complicate estate planning. Indeed, family conflict was recently cited as one of the three main threats to the success of estate planning in California and the rest of the country. According to the recent survey, the other two are market volatility and tax reform.

Nearly half of the estate planning professionals consulted for the survey cited family conflict as the biggest threat. Contributing to this belief is the difficulty that can surround designating beneficiaries, and another factor that contributed was a general lack of communication within the family. Estate planning usually involves goals for what the plan is expected to accomplish in retirement for the principals and following their deaths for their descendants.

Failure to do estate planning can lead to undesired outcomes

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Estate Tax on Thursday, March 21, 2019.

Estate planning can be a stressful process. It may be difficult to know where to begin. In addition to facing one's own mortality, creating an estate plan in California can be an emotional experience in deciding who gets what and when. Circumstances that can further complicate all of this include needing to provide for family members with special needs or family members from previous marriages. But deciding to let the task of estate planning wait until a later date may result in the state deciding how your estate is settled.

A plan should be set up to allow for changes as the circumstances of one's life change. Frequently, an initial plan will be created after the birth of a child. Such things as guardianship may be central at such a time. A couple in their 50s reviewed a will they had created when their three children were small. Two of the three children are now adults and the size of their estate had also grown.

Power of attorney vital in establishing end-of-life care

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Powers of Attorney on Thursday, March 14, 2019.

People frequently know the expiration dates on food in the refrigerator, a driver's license, medication and even a passport. One expiration date no one can know, in California or anywhere, is one's own. Coy Luther Perry III, better known as Luke Perry, the actor, died March 9 after suffering two strokes. He was just 52 years old. He had had a cancer scare in 2015 and established an estate plan at that time, most likely including a medical power of attorney.

The first stroke was severe and left the actor surviving by means of life support. Five days following the first stroke the family decided to terminate life support as it had become apparent he had probably suffered a second stroke and would not recover. The fact that the family was able to make the decision and have that decision respected indicates a medical power of attorney probably existed. Without it, especially if the family had not been able to agree, the decision would have been left to a probate court and a possibly a long, drawn out and public process.

Trust administration critical to the plan's success

On behalf of Newman Law Group posted in Trusts on Wednesday, March 6, 2019.

In creating an estate plan for a sizable estate that will eventually be left to one's children, people frequently make use of trusts that enable them to control the distribution of the estate after one's death. This is frequently done to ensure that children are old enough and responsible enough to manage the assets received. For a trust to be carried out successfully in California, close attention should be paid to the trust administration.

Questions posed by the trust beneficiaries frequently involve what assets are being distributed and when they will be distributed. The plan may specify that a portion of an heir's trust is to be distributed at the age of 30 with the balance coming at the age of 40. In the case of multiple children, the value of the estate may be equally split but not dispersed at the same time as the children are of different ages.