Estate planning guides for California families.
Plain-English articles to help you understand your options before we meet. They are general information, not legal advice for your situation.
Plan your estate
Advanced planning
Family limited partnerships: a plan for the wealth your family shares
An FLP can bring management, gifting and succession for shared family assets into one coordinated structure. What it can do, and the limits on valuation, taxes and creditor protection.
An LLC for your rental property: why the operating agreement matters
A properly structured and maintained LLC can help separate a rental business’s obligations from your personal assets. Why the operating agreement, daily practices, the deed transfer and your living trust must work together.
Domestic asset protection trusts and inheritor’s trusts: preserving family wealth
A Domestic Asset Protection Trust holds assets for yourself; an Inheritor’s Trust holds what you leave your adult children. How they differ, and why California law and planning ahead matter.
Estate planning when one or both spouses are not U.S. citizens
Federal law limits the marital deduction when the surviving spouse is not a U.S. citizen. How domicile, a qualified domestic trust and lifetime gifts fit into a California family’s plan.
After a loss
Named as successor trustee: what should I do now?
Being named trustee often comes at the hardest time. What the role asks of you, and why it helps to have counsel beside you from the start.
The house was never put in the trust. Now what?
A parent signed a trust, but the deed was never changed. Why probate is not always the answer, and why the details decide.
Advanced planning, step by step.
- How a GRAT works: an illustrated example A hypothetical two-year grantor retained annuity trust, step by step, with the assumptions behind each figure.
- How a life insurance trust works: an illustrated example A hypothetical comparison showing how the ownership of a $10 million policy can affect estate taxes, with its assumptions.
- How a dynasty trust works: an illustrated example A hypothetical comparison showing how a dynasty trust may preserve more for later generations, with its assumptions.
Start with a conversation.
Meetings are by appointment, weekdays 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM, by Zoom or at our offices. Call 888.380.2288 or 415.693.8882, or request a time online. Consultations in English, Cantonese or Mandarin.