This is a difficult question to answer without knowing significantly more details. I will assume, however, that a married couple jointly created a revocable living trust. One spouse has now died and the surviving spouse wants to amend the trust. Whether or not this can happen depends upon the... View More

Starting with your last question, if he dies before writing the will, his estate will be probated, unless it is so small that summary procedures can be utilized to avoid probate. Even if he does complete a holographic will, it will have to be probated, which is a costly and time-consuming... View More

This will likely require a court petition to correct as a title company probably would not insure title if and when the property is ever sold. An attorney would be able to look at all the documents and explore other ways to resolve the issue.

If your father's dementia has progressed to a point where he lacks mental capacity, the "Incapacity" provisions of his trust take over and I assume you were the designated successor trustee, so you then take over as trustee in the place of your father. When this occurs, it is a good... View More

Assuming you and your brother own the property as tenants in common, your brother can transfer any portion of his share in the house to whomever he chooses. Your share will remain at 50 percent.

There are a lot of unknown factors that may be involved here. For example, what happens if your aunt dies before your father? Is there a no-contest clause? Likely there is. Were the 50K genuine gifts to you and your cousin, or were they intended to be just enough to make you think twice before... View More

If your parents are mentally competent, they should execute durable powers of attorney that would allow you to act on their behalf. As well, they should have advance health care directives that allow you, or whomever they choose, to make medical decisions for them in the event they are unable to... View More

This question is difficult to answer without knowing where your father resided. If in North Carolina, where your sister also resides, you will need to retain an elder law attorney there. If your father resided here, you should contact an elder law attorney local to where he resided and where your... View More

I believe only an attorney licensed in Mexico would be qualified to answer this. Some U.S. financial institutions who have branches in Mexico might accept one, depending upon all the circumstances, but generally speaking, I doubt anyone else would accept a California POA.

The Pay-On-Death accounts will override the provisions of the Will and Trust. However, if your grandmother no longer wishes your father to have any access to her bank accounts, she should talk to a lawyer about removing him as trustee. Depending upon all of the circumstances, he could otherwise... View More

No one should give even most over the counter medications to an elderly person without the approval of the elder's physician as many meds act very differently in older people. Either way, a Power of Attorney never authorizes an agent to administer medications. If your father still has... View More

The children need to immediately talk to an experienced trust and estates litigator who can marshal and analyze all of the assets and investigate the status of any divorce/separation proceeding. This a complex area that crosses over between probate and family law.

Medi-Cal will seek recovery only from property that is probated in a California court.

My condolences to you for the loss of your Mom. The power of the person who is the agent under your Mom's power of attorney ended when your Mom died. That person has continued authority only if he/she is the designated successor trustee under your Mom's living trust or is the executor... View More

Your brother's failures certainly do sound like neglect and likely should be reported to Adult Protective Services. That said, there are a lot of questions that would need to be answered. Was the elder not able to receive any of the messages? Did the doctor ever send a letter? I would... View More

You are free to choose any lawyer you wish to represent you. I have heard that some attorneys will include language in their trusts that tend to leave beneficiaries thinking they have to use the drafting attorney. I do not believe such language is either appropriate or enforceable.

The answer would depend upon the wording of the trust agreement. Most likely, if you are designated as successor trustee and are willing and able to carry out that job, then the current trustee cannot simply designate someone else. This would require either consent of all the beneficiaries and/or... View More

If your brother that died had only very limited assets and there was no probate or other formal trust administration, it is likely appropriate that you can distribute his share of the funds equally to each of his four children. It would be advisable to have each of the children complete this form:... View More

If Brother A had no children, no parents and no siblings other than Brother B, Brother B would receive the property under the laws of intestate succession. However, Brother B would have to petition for probate and all of Brother A's debts must be paid before he can receive the home. If there... View More

I agree with what Mr. Dorfman has advised. I would add that, typically, spouses in a blended marriage provide in their trust that the surviving spouse may continue to live in the home until they die. There would also be other details about who is responsible for maintenance and upkeep, insurance,... View More