You do not need a lawyer to get or create a power of attorney in California. A power of attorney is a document giving another person (named your “agent”) the right to act in your name (wherein you are the “principal”) within the scope and limitations set by the document. A power of attorney can
read more
When property belongs to one person, it is generally easy to figure out who owns all the equity, and who decides where ownership over the property will be transferred in the future. But in many cases, property is not owned by a single person or entity. When two or more people own property, that property
read more
A pour-over will is an estate planning document built to ensure that anything in your estate that has not been funded into your living trust before your death is automatically funded into your trust afterwards. Pour-over wills exist to generally to prevent having assets outside of the trust after death. If one is building an
read more
Preparation is always good. We have no way of knowing what the future might hold, and with a little bit of foresight, we can save ourselves and our families a lot of grief and trouble. That is the basic ethos behind estate planning tools like durable power of attorney documents (POAs), which enable someone (an
read more
COVID-19’s impact on the economy has been absolutely devastating. Not only have lockdowns and travel restrictions greatly impacted industries across the country, but for every death, there is an assorted collection of infections with short-term and long-term physical deficits, grieving parents and children, and countless Americans laid off as business owners line-up to file bankruptcy.
read more
When we die, everything we own must be distributed among the living. Aside from some relatively fringe exceptions where people have requested to be buried with all sorts of belongings, the dead cannot “own” anything per se, and as such, must pass property on to their loved ones and next of kin. An estate plan
read more
Probate is an important part of the estate planning process, as it usually sets the timeframe from your death to the total dissolution and distribution of your estate. However, contrary to popular belief, probate does not always last forever. The probate proceedings process can be truncated, sped through, or even skipped depending on the circumstances,
read more
Estate planning tools have long been one of the only ways for LGBT couples to ensure that a part of what they own is left behind for their partner. An estate plan constitutes a list of documents and legal precautions created with the explicit purpose of preparing for death. While grim on the surface, an
read more
Healthcare spending accounted for 17.7 percent of the US’s GDP in 2018, in comparison to just 5 percent in 1960. In individual terms, that is an average of $11,000 per person, for a total of $3.6 trillion. Americans pay significantly more for their healthcare than the citizens of most other developed countries, and rising healthcare
read more
Estate plans are typically built to deal with matters of property and wealth after death, ensuring that ownership between generations is transferred as per the decedent’s wishes. But there is more to an estate plan than determining who gets the house and who gets the vinyl collection. Many elements of an estate plan are crucial
read more