Many California residents establish charitable trusts as part of their estate plans. A charitable trust allows them to enjoy a reliable income stream while donating or designating assets to tax-exempt charitable organizations and thereby reaping tax-advantaged benefits. Trustees are accountable for how they manage charitable remainder trusts and other charitable trusts, which are generally irrevocable. […]
Real estate passed on from one generation to the next is one of the primary ways wealth is built in this country. Siblings who jointly inherit a home or other California real estate assets from a deceased parent can sell the property and the proceeds. However, the common transfer of wealth through inheritance can be complicated if […]
If you are a beneficiary of a Trust in California, you have legal rights. Below is a list of some of a California Trust beneficiary’s basic rights. Obtain Copies of Trust Documents Trust beneficiaries are entitled to receive copies of the Trust documents. Beneficiaries should receive copies of the Trust when either: The Trust (or […]
So, you need a new Trustee and you don’t like the next person named, huh? Removing a Trustee is never easy, but why bother even trying if the next person named to act as Trustee is no better than the currently acting Trustee? Well, you may be in for a nice surprise. When a court […]
When children inherit assets from a Trust there are basically two ways for them to receive the assets. They can receive their assets “outright and free of trust,” which means their share of the Trust will be distributed into their name now with no further strings attached. Or their share of the Trust can remain […]
Suppose you have fought a long, hard fight in court and taken your Trustee all the way to trial. You win the trial, obtain a court order, and now the Trustee refuses to comply with the terms of the court order. What do you do? There are several options you must enforce a court order […]
If you want to challenge a Trust or Trust amendment, it all starts with the pleadings. Pleadings refers to the paper work, usually a petition to the court, that must be drafted and filed to start the process. You have to know what to say and what legal claims to include to start your lawsuit. […]
In California, married couples typically create a joint Trust—One Trust where both husband and wife are the settlors, beneficiaries, and trustees. They transfer all of their property into the joint Trust and the Trust is revocable during their lifetime. That means it can be changed or terminated while they both are alive. Nothing set in […]
If you want to challenge a Trust or Trust amendment, it all starts with the pleadings. Pleadings refers to the paper work, usually a petition to the court, that must be drafted and filed to start the process. You have to know what to say and what legal claims to include to start your lawsuit. […]
You must have evidence if you want to win at trial. But what is evidence? There are three types of evidence: facts, witnesses, and documents. And most facts will be introduced at trial through either a witness or a document, or sometimes both. Evidence further comes in two broad varieties: direct and circumstantial. Direct evidence […]
