FAQ

This section answers the most common questions that come up in general discussions regarding estate planning. For a comprehensive discussion please see our Estate Planning 101 section.

Who needs estate planning?

Estate planning is all about control and everyone needs control of their estate. You may have heard estate planning is for people with substantial assets preparing to pass them to the next generation. While that may be true, estate planning is important at every age, in every phase of life, and at every asset level. Single individuals need to consider who makes financial and medical decisions for them if they become incapacitated. Young families need to consider and plan for guardians to care for minor children and financial assets. In most cases, failing to plan your estate will result in the government making decisions that you could have planned for in advance.
 

What kind of decisions do I lose control of when I fail to plan my estate?

The core goal of estate planning is to articulate a blueprint or road map of your wishes and instructions in the event of incapacity and death. Where you have not planned, the government has made decisions for you based on the defaults established in California law and the courts enforce those decisions. A major concern of parents is who would serve as the guardian of minor children if the parents were to pass away. Without the parents nominating a guardian in a will, the court would have to make that decision for you. Another concern may be the kind of medical treatment to receive or reject when incapacitated. Without stating wishes in an Advance Health Care Directive, the attending physicians are bound by their duty to make decisions for you and according to their oath. Lastly, when passing assets to heirs in the absence of a will and trust, the courts will distribute assets according to California intestate laws that may conflict with your wishes.
 

I’m married, I thought my spouse will have control in these cases?

In many cases, particularly in cases of incapacity, your spouse will have control of decisions. The real question is, does your spouse want sole control and responsibility or would your spouse prefer to have an outline of your wishes in advance? Estate planning allows you to have a conversation with your spouse, plan for the unknown, and maintain control over decisions that may cause anxiety or conflict in your family. Additionally, in cases of death, the surviving spouse maintains control of most assets, especially when holding joint title or when named as the beneficiary. However, absent a will and trust some assets may be outside the control of your spouse and still need to be reviewed by the courts. As mentioned above, the incapacity or death of the second spouse without any planning will revert to California laws as the default.

Aside from control, are there other reasons to have an estate plan?

Yes, without an estate plan at the time of passing you are unnecessarily subjecting your loved ones to the risk of fees, taxes, and time lost to red tape. While recent changes to the Federal Estate Tax laws reduce the risk of estate taxes except for very large estates, a larger concern should be time and money lost to the courts and attorney who sorts out your estate. While not every asset will need to go through the courts, California has a statutory schedule of attorney fees for assets that will likely add thousands of dollars in fees to the cost of settling your estate. Additionally, the process generally takes a minimum of four months to complete and often takes as many as six to nine months. An attorney may evaluate your particular assets for a more detailed discussion. For further discussion on the fees you can expect, please refer to the Estate Planning 101 section of this site on probate.

What should I expect to pay for estate planning?

The price attorneys charge to draft documents varies considerably. You may receive flyers in the mail offering estate plans for a few hundred dollars. You may have been quoted a few thousand dollars from an attorney. TV personalities and websites offer document drafting for a couple hundred dollars. You may find free documents online (please don’t use those!). You will find no shortage of price points for estate planning. Your decision should really focus on the competence of the attorney, comprehensiveness of the planning, and comfort in the service that matches your price point. For more information on what we charge please refer to our page on pricing and please remember initial calls and consultations are complimentary.

What does a comprehensive estate plan look like?

The Four Pillars of estate planning documents are the Will, the Trust, the Power of Attorney, and the Advance Health Care Directive. The most comprehensive plan and the highest level of client satisfaction results from knowing our clients and their wishes thoroughly when drafting these documents. It is not as easy as checking a few boxes and drafting a few provisions in legal documents. By “comprehensive” we mean specifically tailored to take into account your goals, personal values, family dynamic, and the various types of assets you own. We also take special care to review or prepare ancillary forms and documents, such as property deeds, beneficiary designation forms, and HIPAA authorizations.

WHAT IS THE ESTATE PLANNING PROCESS LIKE?

Initially, we have a conversation over the phone to learn your general background and set a time to meet. Ahead of the meeting you will be asked to complete a questionnaire and collect a few documents that help you organize your thoughts and compile information regarding your assets. At the meeting we discuss your objectives, address your concerns, review your assets and family dynamic. When needed, we will educate you on the areas and issues of estate planning that will most impact you.

Following the meeting we draft documents specifically tailored to meet your specifications and incorporate the advice we give you at the meeting. When the documents are ready we will have a “signing ceremony” to review the documents, answer questions, provide additional advice, and officially sign your documents into legal existence. While most attorneys stop at this point, we will follow up to ensure the ancillary documents are completed and the trust is funded in order to make the estate plan effective.

The first step in this process is contacting our office for a complimentary consultation.