california probate code

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First, what is a contract to make a will?

A contract to make a will is exactly as it sounds.  It is an agreement to provide for a person as part of a decedent’s will.  The terms of the agreement could be as simple as a promise to provide services in exchange for a specific cash gift as part of a decedent’s will.  For example, Elizabeth may promise to provide caregiving and household services to William in exchange for William’s promise to provide her with $250,000 upon his death.  When William dies, hopefully his will has a provision leaving a specific cash gift of $250,000 to Elizabeth.  If not, then there has been a breach of the agreement.  The agreement can become substantially more complex, particularly when real property is the subject of the agreement.  Instead of agreeing to pay Elizabeth $250,000 in exchange for her services, William may promise to leave his house to Elizabeth.  Again, when William dies there may be a breach of the agreement if William’s will contains no provision instructing that his house be given to Elizabeth.

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Continue Reading Dead Men Tell No Tales and Other Issues with Contracts to Make a Will

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Frequently when a conservatorship proceeding is commenced, the proposed conservatee is residing in his or her personal residence. Having a conservatorship established can be a distressing experience for a conservatee who has awareness of the effect of such a proceeding. One primary concern may be whether there is going to be a change to living arrangements with which the conservatee has been familiar, sometimes for decades. Naturally, it is commonplace for a conservatee to express that they “don’t want to go to a care home.” In recognition of the need to affirmatively preserve the right of conservatees to remain in their own personal residence, the California Legislature passed an amendment to existing law which applies a higher evidentiary standard before a conservator may move a conservatee from his or her personal residence.
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Continue Reading There’s No Place Like Home – Heightened Evidentiary Standard for Moving Conservatees from Their Personal Residence

It was recently revealed that the late Paul Walker left his entire estate—valued at approximately $25 million—to his 15-year-old daughter, Meadow.

As reported, Paul Walker named his father as the executor of his will and his mother, Cheryl, as the guardian of Meadow’s person and now-$25 million estate. Prior to his death, Meadow lived…

In my two previous posts, I discussed the value of comprehensive estate planning even if you have a small estate or you want everything to go to your spouse.  In this last installment, I will address the most common reason I hear from clients who say they don’t need an estate plan, which is, “I don’t need an estate plan because I have everything in beneficiary designation accounts.”

People often try to create a “do-it-yourself” estate plan by creating beneficiary designations on all of their assets.  This is typically done by titling assets with another person “with right of survivorship,” holding assets jointly, or creating “payable on death” (POD) or “transfer on death” (TOD) accounts.  I caution against using this approach for several reasons.

In California, you can have $150,000 in total assets (subject to a few exclusions) outside of a trust or without beneficiary designations without triggering a probate.  Additionally, the threshold amount for transferring real property without a probate in California is $50,000.  With TOD/POD accounts, if the designated beneficiary is deceased at your death and if no successor is named, the account goes back to your estate and counts toward the $150,000.  The same is true if you are the surviving owner of property that had been owned “with right of survivorship,” which often happens with real property.  If enough beneficiary designations fail or were never created, it is possible that a probate will be required.

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Continue Reading You Need an Estate Plan (Even in Your 20s and 30s) (Part Three)