Let’s say you own a rental property or are the sole owner of a home. Let’s say you die without bequeathing that property to anyone specific and leave behind children and a surviving spouse. What happens next? Without a will, the state you reside in (and the state in which the property is located) will …
An estate consists of everything you owned in death. A trust is a legal entity funded by your property and managed by a third-party trustee for the sake of your chosen beneficiaries. In both instances, these are accumulations of property and assets meant to be passed onto others at some point after your death (usually). …
The death of a loved one is a very difficult thing. We make time to see to it that they pass on with their dignity intact and that they receive the funerary rites they deserve. But first and foremost, it is a time to remember and to grieve. Yet when that time comes, a lot …
Your last will and testament is only your last will and testament so long as you do not make a new one. And there is really nothing standing in your way to making a new one. But what if you only want to change one line? Make one small amendment? Take one beneficiary out? Add …
When we die, we leave behind what we own to be distributed among the living. There is very little we can take with us to the grave, let alone beyond it. And unlike the Egyptians, it has generally fallen out of style to be buried with one’s wealth. But who gets what? And how? For …
When a person dies, their assets are distributed among the living. The process of overseeing that distribution – and legitimizing the documents detailing the decedent’s wishes and intentions – is called the probate process. Probate is overseen in a probate court, by a probate judge, in the decedent’s county of residence. Key to any probate …
A probate judge works in the civil court, and like any other judge, serves as a judicial officer of the state. Probate judges play a central role in the probate process, overseen by the titular probate court, or as it’s known in other states, the surrogate’s court. Probate judges make the final call for important …
Whether it was overlooked, never found, or passed on by multiple different heirs, an unclaimed inheritance can eventually be escheated to the state government. To understand how an inheritance can be left unclaimed – as well as how to claim it before it’s too late – we need to dive into how inheritance and beneficiary …
Probate courts and the probate process are necessary for the validation of any last will and testament, as well as the arbitration of final debts and other financial obligations, and the ultimate distribution of a person’s estate left behind after death. Probate can and does work without a will and is necessary even if a …
California requirements for a last will and testament can be confusing. Hiring a professional will ensure that your documents are legally binding. A last will and testament is the classic example of a basic estate planning document: a legally enforceable set of instructions left behind, to be executed after death, pertaining to the distribution and bequeathment of …