The Journal — Plain-English Estate Law
Plain-English guidance on wills, trusts, probate, and protecting your family in California.
Can a Surviving Spouse Change a Trust After One Spouse Dies?
Whether the survivor can amend a joint California trust after one spouse dies depends on the trust's terms, here's how to read yours, in plain English.
Read →Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples in California
California has no common-law marriage. If you're not married, your partner inherits nothing by default: here's what actually protects them.
Read →How to Collect a Deceased Spouse’s Final Paycheck in California
California lets a surviving spouse collect a deceased spouse's unpaid wages with a simple affidavit, no probate. The exact steps and the current dollar cap.
Read →Who Has the Right to Decide Cremation or Burial in California?
California law sets an exact priority list for who controls funeral and cremation decisions, and a way to put your own wishes legally in charge.
Read →Is There a Deadline to File Probate in California?
There's no statute of limitations to open probate in California, but there IS a 30-day deadline for the will, and waiting has real costs. What the law actually…
Read →Probate Bonds in California: Cost, Requirements, and Waivers
What a California probate bond costs, how the amount is set, and why courts sometimes require one even when the will waives it.
Read →Does Divorce Revoke a Will or Trust in California?
What divorce actually does to your will, trust, and beneficiary forms in California, including the restraining orders that limit changes while the divorce is pending.
Read →Are Payable-on-Death Accounts as Good as a Trust? (California)
POD and TOD accounts avoid probate cheaply but cover nothing if you're incapacitated and can't protect minor or special-needs heirs. When they're fine, and when they aren't.
Read →Want a straight read on where you stand?
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