Areas of Practice

Trusts are a powerful estate planning tool that can help you protect and manage your assets, minimize taxes, and provide for your loved ones. A trust is a legal arrangement in which you transfer ownership of your assets to a trustee, who holds and manages the assets on behalf of your beneficiaries. There are many different types of trusts, each with their own benefits and considerations. For example, in a living trust, assets are transferred to you as  the trustee to hold and manage.

A trust can allow you to avoid the probate process, which is time-consuming, expensive, and public. By transferring your assets to a trust, you can ensure that your assets are managed and distributed according to your wishes, without the need for court intervention.

You can also use trusts can to minimize taxes, both during your lifetime and after your death. For example, a charitable trust can allow charitable donations and receive associated tax incentives for giving.  

Trusts can provide for your loved ones in a more flexible and customized way than a will. For example, you can set up a trust to provide for a child with special needs, or to protect assets for a beneficiary who is not yet responsible enough to manage them on their own.

Our experienced estate planning attorneys can help you determine whether a trust is right for you, and if so, what type of trust best suits your needs. We'll work closely with you to understand your goals, develop a customized estate plan, and ensure that your assets are protected and managed according to your wishes.

A Special Needs Trust, also known as a Supplemental Needs Trust, is a trust designed to benefit individuals with disabilities while protecting their eligibility for government benefits. These trusts are created to supplement the benefits provided by government programs, and to provide financial support for additional expenses that may arise.

Families with special needs children face unique challenges when it comes to planning for their future. A special needs trust can be an essential tool for ensuring that your loved one's needs are met, both now and in the future.

Our experienced attorneys can help you establish a special needs trust that is tailored to your loved one's specific needs. We can guide you through the process of selecting a trustee, identifying assets to fund the trust, and creating a plan for the distribution of trust assets.

If you have a special needs loved one and are interested in establishing a special needs trust, our attorneys are here to help.

Trust administration is the process of managing a trust after its creator has passed away or become incapacitated. This requires a trustee to identify and value assets, notify beneficiaries and heirs, pay creditors and taxes, distribute assets to beneficiaries, and prepare necessary documents and reports (including trust accounting).

With trust administration, an experienced attorney works with a trustee to ensure that the trust is appropriately providing for the beneficiary and following all applicable trust or legal requirements.  

Our team has extensive knowledge of California trust laws, and we understand the complexities involved in trust administration. Contact us to discover how we can simplify trust administration.

Probate law is the administration of a deceased person's estate. When someone passes away, their assets and property are transferred to heirs or beneficiaries through the probate legal process.

This process involves reviewing the deceased person’s will (if present), cataloging their assets, resolving debts or taxes, and distributing remaining assets. When a deceased person doesn’t have a will, they are considered intestate and the probate rules determine the management of the estate.  

Probate law can be complex and time-consuming, particularly if there are disputes or challenges to the validity of the will. With multiple types of probate, determining the right one for your needs can save time and money. If you've been named as an executor of an estate or you're a beneficiary who is navigating the probate process, it's important to have a knowledgeable and experienced probate attorney on your side. We can help guide you through the process, protect your rights, and help you navigate disputes or challenges that may arise.

A conservatorship is a legal arrangement in which a court appoints a conservator to manage the financial affairs and/or personal care of a person who is unable to manage their own affairs. This person, known as the conservatee, may be elderly, disabled, or otherwise incapacitated.

A conservatorship can be necessary if the conservatee is unable to make their own financial or personal care decisions, and there is no other suitable person or mechanism in place to make these decisions on their behalf. The conservator is responsible for managing the conservatee's affairs and making decisions in their best interests.

Conservatorships can be complex and emotionally charged, particularly if there are disputes over who should be appointed as the conservator or what decisions should be made on the conservatee's behalf. A special needs trust that includes a conservatorship is an important tool to plan for long term care of a special needs child. We empathize with the unique challenges of conservatorships and can guide you through the process, protect your rights, and ensure that your loved one's best interests are always at the forefront.

Durable Powers of Attorney or Advanced Healthcare Directives (AHCD) are legal documents that grant authority to another individual to act on your behalf and outlines your wishes regarding medical treatment in the event that you become incapacitated and are unable to make decisions for yourself. Both documents enable you to delegate decisions about your affairs and care to a trusted individual. Particularly with an AHCD, the document can provide guidance to your loved ones and medical providers about what types of treatment you do and do not want, and can help ensure that your wishes are respected.

AHCD’s typically address end-of-life decisions, such as whether you want life-sustaining treatment or artificial nutrition and hydration. They can also address other medical decisions, such as pain management and organ donation. The Durable Powers of Attorney ensures that your resources are accessible to provide for you.

Having a Durable Power of Attorney with an AHCD can provide peace of mind for you and your loved ones, preventing the need for court involvement through a conservatorship. Our experienced estate planning attorneys can help you create these documents that reflect your wishes, protect your interests, and enables others to care for you.