The passing of a loved one is never easy, but if your family member had an estate plan in place, you may inherit something to remember him or her by. In California, a person’s will must be submitted to probate in order for the estate to be distributed, and one of the most common questions that our office is asked is how long does probate take? The answer is that it depends on a number of...
A living trust is a useful tool for managing your estate assets both while you are still alive and after your passing. This type of trust protects your assets, removes them from the probate process, and can potentially save your beneficiaries significant money when it comes to paying taxes on your estate. At The Inheritance Recovery Attorneys, our team of experienced trust litigation attorneys...
In the vast majority of cases, the reading of a will is an unsurprising event. Oftentimes, the deceased will have told their heirs what to expect to inherit or the inheritance is divided up as expected. However, in some cases, the reading of a will results in shocking revelations about who will or will not inherit and how much of the estate goes to each beneficiary. In these situations, you...
Being named as the administrator or executor of an estate can be an honor, but it can also feel like an overwhelming task. Many people wonder if they can go through probate on their own. If the estate is simple, and you have both the time and patience to handle the case, you might be able to manage probate by yourself. However, if there is even a chance of the following issues, you should...
The death of a family member can be a tumultuous time for you and your loved ones. In some cases this situation can bring the remaining family closer together, but other times it can further widen the rift between siblings and other members of the family. If someone does not receive a portion of the deceased’s estate they think is fair or is excluded from the will, he or she may contest the...
It is never easy dealing with the loss of a loved one, any everyone handles grief in a different way. When attempting to manage the probate process and handle the different family dynamics, the entire situation can sometimes feel overwhelming. At The Inheritance Recovery Attorneys, we understand how stressful and complicated dealing with family dynamics during probate can be, and we are here...
As your parents age, members of your family, friends, and caretakers may take more of a prominent role in their lives. They may begin to have more influence on your parent’s life, but when does that influence transition to something more sinister? Sometimes, a person will enter an elderly person’s life in order to unduly influence their life and the disposition of their estate, but do you know...
Trusts can be complex instruments involving significant assets, numerous beneficiaries, the instructions of the grantor, and the appointment of a trustee to manage the trust. In most cases, the trustee is a person or institution that is responsible with the handling of the trust funds and communicates regularly with the beneficiaries of the trust about the health of the trust. However, in some...
If you are the heir in a will or beneficiary of a trust, you are entitled to those assets in a prompt and timely manner. But sometimes, a trustee or executor drags his or her feet on distributing the assets that you deserve. Regardless of the reason, you have a right to compel distribution of what you are rightfully owed, and an experienced probate attorney is your best chance at success....
Typically, the reading of a will is not a surprising or unexpected situation. Many people share the contents of their will with their loved ones before their passing, or you can roughly estimate what you might inherit based on how close you were to your loved one and by intestacy laws. However, sometimes the reading of a will does shock potential heirs when they discover that they have been...