The Journal
Plain-English Estate Law
Plain-English guidance on wills, trusts, probate, and protecting your family in California.
Can I See the Trust While My Parent Is Still Alive?
No, and the answer surprises people who assume being named in a trust gives them a right to read it. While your parent is alive and competent, the…
Read →What Trust Administration Actually Costs in California
Trust administration has no statutory fee schedule. That’s the single most important difference from probate, and it cuts both ways: nobody is entitled to a percentage, and nobody…
Read →Probate or Trust Administration: Which One Are You Actually In?
These are two different processes with different rules, different timelines, and very different costs, and people routinely start the wrong one. The question that sorts it is not…
Read →Flat Fee or Hourly for a California Probate? Neither, Mostly
In a California probate the attorney’s ordinary fee is not negotiable in the way people assume. It’s set by statute. Prob. Code § 10810 fixes it at 4%…
Read →You Inherited a House With a Tenant in It
You inherited the house and it came with a tenant. The tenant’s lease did not die with your parent. Whoever now holds title stepped into the landlord’s shoes…
Read →The Trustee Stopped Answering. What Can You Actually Make Them Do?
Silence from a trustee is not a legal category, which is why it’s so frustrating. There’s no statute titled “trustee ignoring you.” What there is instead is a…
Read →Do I Have to File a Trust Tax Return the Year Mom Died?
Usually two returns, sometimes three. The year someone dies, their tax life splits in half, and the trust that holds their assets becomes a separate taxpayer on the…
Read →The Trustee Moved Trust Money Into a Personal Account
Trust money in a trustee’s personal account is a breach of fiduciary duty on its face. Whether it’s theft, sloppiness, or a bank’s bad advice matters for what…
Read →Want a straight read on where you stand?
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