Yes, if she owns the property, she has the right to give it away by Will to anyone she wants. Unfortunately, for the lucky recipient of the property, he/she will need to perfect your aunt's title to the property before he/she can receive it, and that may mean a probate of your... View More

Yes, all it takes is a simple writing (or letter or amendment) that states the obvious: that you’re the trustor/trustee, the trust is revocable/amendable, and you wish to resign as trustee and to appoint a new trustee to serve in your place and stead, that you do so immediately, and by your... View More

As Nina says, one option is to create a separate property trust for your inheritance and provide lifetime benefits for your spouse if he outlives you and then benefits for your other family when he dies (so that none of that property passes through his estate or goes to his family when he dies).... View More

I agree with Gerald. If you don't want to use a formal Will (which requires the signatures of at least two disinterested witnesses) or a revocable living Trust, consider using a holographic Will (which doesn't require the signatures of any witnesses but does require that the entire Will... View More

California law requires anyone who holds the original Will of a deceased person to file the Will with the court clerk of the County where the decedent resided. A copy must also be mailed to the Executor named in the Will, or to a beneficiary if the Executor’s whereabouts are unknown. The relevant... View More

That’s not my understanding. Only individuals with limited income will be entitled to a stimulus check, not trusts.

You can always terminate his services and hire another attorney to complete the probate, or you can try to do it yourself with the help of a paralegal or do-it-yourself book. I suspect there are complications of which you are unaware which prevent final closure. It should not take 11 years to... View More

Simply file your own Petition for Probate and ask to become the Executor under your grandfather’s Will. Same forms that your mother filed. Buy a book from Nolo Press on how to file a probate in California. That should teach you everything you need to know. Good luck! If that sounds too... View More

I agree with Nina. If the first party trust, also known as a self-settled trust, has a Medi-Cal payback provision in it, you can deposit the receipt into it and it’s no longer considered an available resource under SSI and Medi-Cal rules and regulations. However the income must be reported to... View More

Yes. You can transfer title to the property from a trust to your name as beneficiary without triggering a due-on-sale clause in the loan agreement under the Garn St. Germaine Act. The lien carries over to the new owner however, so keep paying the mortgage.

Without being the conservator of her person and estate, there’s not much you can do except be supportive of her. The conservator has control of her money and is accountable to the court for the use of her money. If he is using her money inappropriately, the court will demand that he pay the... View More

I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your mother. Since the property was held in joint tenancy, it passes by right of survivorship to you as the surviving owner. All you need to do to establish your sole ownership of the property is to file and record an Affidavit of Death of Joint Tenant to... View More

Just let it be known to the court at the time of your hearing on the petition for conservatorship that you wish to contest the conservatorship. The court should either grant you a continuance to either file your paperwork or hire an attorney to represent you. Don't expect a continuance of... View More

Yes. You have the right to withdraw your voluntary petition at any time before the entry of a final order. Good luck in court tomorrow.

As a follow-up to Mike’s answer, check out this weblink for an example of community property, quasi community property, and separate property: http://azemikalaw.com/post-102-what-is-quasi-community-property.

That's the problem when someone dies. The legal owner of the personal property has died, and until a personal representative is appointed by the court to represent the decedent's interests, there is no owner. If you're not an owner, you can't call the police to report the... View More

You are correct. Personal belongings are personal property and belong to the decedent. If she had no Will, they would pass to her natural heirs. If she had a Will, they would pass to those named under the Will. If they were owned by the trust at the time of her death, they would pass under the... View More

Your brother must be a current income and/or principal beneficiary of the trust to avoid reassessment under Prop. 13, and all other current income and/or principal beneficiaries must also qualify for an exemption for the transfer to the trust to be considered an exempt transfer. The county... View More

An ombudsman is only needed for an advance health care directive, not a statutory power of attorney, if your sister is in a nursing home, and both can be executed at different times.

If it's true, your sister doesn't have to show you her power of attorney. If she uses it, she's only accountable to the principal, her mother. She's not required to use it. It's probably good that she has one, because it can help avoid the need for a probate... View More